Phantoms of Silent Hill
by Darkmoose84
Summary: Danny and Dani journey to Silent Hill, while Sam is trapped in her now haunted apartment, her new clairvoyance driving her insane. For those who enjoyed Alienvs.Zim, there are a few tie ins. DannyxSam, DanixYoungblood, TuckerxValeri. Please read and revie
1. The Disappearance

Chapter 1 – The Disappearance

September 23, 2022

The children patrolled along the edge of the old road just outside of Amity Park, Colorado. This road was all but forgotten by the general public and was traveled only by those who took it to get to their area of living or to cause trouble in the middle of nowhere. Trees grew wildly along this road, reaching out towards the blue sky; the sun glistened through the leaves, creating little patches of shadow the children walked between. David and Christine Fenton walked ahead of the group, while Erica Foley and Micky Chang kept their distance from each other.

"So," David said, "Where are we going again?"

"To the haunted house, twerp," Micky said.

"And you wonder why we don't talk to you as much," Erica said.

"Hey, just telling the truth," Micky said, "He's a twerp."

"Shut up, butt-munch," Christine said, "and stop picking on my brother. He didn't do anything to you."

"What you going to do about it, wimp?" Micky chided.

"Poop-face."

"Turd-burglar."

"Enough," David said, "We're getting closer."

"Have your mom and dad heard of this place?" Erica asked, catching up to the Fenton kids in front of her, "I mean, given their business, you'd think they might be really into this place."

"Nah," Christine said, "They just worry about places that people complain about." Her mom and dad had the second job of ghost hunting, something passed on from their grandparents. Her dad's day job consisted of working on rockets for NASA, and her mom was a music store manager. There was something in them, however, which made then want to continue her dad's family tradition. Their lives were like those of the T.A.P.S. members, with a day job and a night job. Still, they managed to make time for their kids, or at least they felt so. David and Christine, being young, still had trouble understanding why their parents had to be so busy.

David was wearing a white t-shirt and black jeans. He had black hair, just like his dad's. Christine had on a black t-shirt with the band "Led Zeppelin" on the front and a black and red plaid skort. She had black hair with a white streak that curved around the back to her temple areas. Micky wore a green shirt with some sort of strange pink monster on the front and black jeans, He had black and red spiked hair. Erica wore a yellow shirt and red skirt, just like her mom used to. Her hair was in braids

The four of them neared a pathway off the road that led down into a ditch between the trees. In this small downward grove was the dilapidated house Micky had discovered a week ago, taking a long walk alone and trying to not think about his mom's mental state or his dad's sole focus on his mother's recovery. The house was a two story structure with what looked like a stitched in roof at one time. The old wood of the walls seemed to have been rotted by numerous rainstorms. The windows were cracked, and each crack looked like a pupil, staring out upon those that would dare pass by.

"And this place is haunted?" Erica asked sarcastically, "My mom has done her share of ghost hunting, and this doesn't look anything like where she would go."

"It looks like it to me," David said, "If I were a ghost, I'd probably stay here."

"This place looks like somewhere mom would visit," Christine said, "on or off the job."

"You've got a point," David responded. They made their way down the steep path, thinking that if they ran too fast, they would fall over, and trying to keep at that steady pace that would give them perfect balance. Dirt and dust piled up around their shoes as they skidded to a stop.

"Hey," Micky pointed out, "That wasn't there before." The four were now looking at a large hole in the side of the house. It was a perfect circle with a red ring around it and writing none of them were able to read. "Do you think this place was used by witches at one time?"

"It wouldn't surprise me," Christine said, walking closer to it and cocking her head with interest.

"Well, then," Micky said, "now, let's get down to business. I dare any one of you to go in there."

"What?" David asked, "Are you crazy?"

"Yeah, go on in, ghost hunter kid," Micky said, "Or are you too dang chicken?"

"Well if you're so brave," Christine responded, "why don't you go on in yourself?"

"Yeah, chicken-wuss," Erica said, "if you're so dang brave, you go in."

"Well I…" Micky stuttered.

Just then, Christine heard some sort of sound from the hole that made her blood freeze. It sounded like that of a little girl, crying and giving a haunting echo as she did. There was a sense of caring, motherly instinct Christine had that made her want to investigate further, but she couldn't see anything through the darkened opening. Unlike her mom, Christine used to play with dolls all the time. Mrs. Fenton could not figure it out, but she still accepted her daughter as being just a caring person and playing as one likewise.

"Chris," David said, "you're not thinking of going in there are you?"

"Don't you hear that sound, Dave?" Christine asked.

"No," David said, "What sound?"

"You're freaking us out," Erica said.

"Well I don't care if you guys can't hear it," Christine said, "There might be someone hurt in there. I've got to go see." With that, without hesitation, she stepped through the dark portal and into the nothingness the other's eyes could not pierce. The remaining three gathered around the hole and tried to pier in but to no avail.

"What do you see?" Micky asked, but his response was not even answered by an echo.

They waited for what felt like an eternity; it was actually just five minutes, but it felt like longer. They were all worried about what she might have encountered or that the ghost had gotten her. David couldn't take it anymore and got up.

"Hey, Dave," Erica asked, "What are you doing?"

"Hey, dude," Micky said, "don't be as stupid as you are in school all the time. This isn't like wanting to sit at the front of the class or staying after class to get extra help, knowing the teacher could eat your brains. This is a serious ghost issue here."

"I don't care," David said, "That's my sister in there. I've got to make sure she's okay." He then climbed through the black hole himself and into the house.

"No, don't" Micky and Erica both said, getting up and following after him, climbing through the hole themselves. What they found on the other end was just the just the dusty, wooden floorboard of the abandoned house. The Fenton kids were not to be found anywhere. Micky checked downstairs, the musty smell appealing to him rather than agitating him. Erica checked upstairs and could find nothing in the bedrooms but some unturned sheets and old clothes within the closet.

"Did you see anything?" Erica asked as she and Micky climbed back out of the hole.

"No," Micky said, "not a thing."

"We've got to tell our parents," Erica responded in a panicked voice. They both looked back at the hole and saw that the red ring with the weird writing had disappeared. Now it was just a simple hole in the side of the house. Shaking in every limb, they ran back up the steep path and down the road. They ran until their muscles felt as if they were about to snap before they got back to the main road within Amity Park.

Danielle found herself standing on what felt like metal grating in near pitch darkness. Rain was falling all around her. She looked down and saw what looked like a bizarre broken meat factory. What was strange about it was that the hanging meat looked like human flesh and twitching human body parts, all done up in a macabre, twisted fashion. There looked to be another floor beneath her; she saw what looked like two kids walking around down there. She looked closer and saw that they were none other than her two second cousins. Slightly ahead of them was another child, in a blue dress, staring up at her with a ghastly face that sent her brain yammering into the center of her skull.

She woke up in her apartment in a cold sweat, sitting at her desk in her apartment, the window outside revealing the night's sky. Something was wrong, and she knew it. Danny had to hear about this; she would call him tomorrow.


	2. The Contact

Chapter 2 – The Contact

"Mr. Fenton," the police officer said as Danny stepped out of the car and onto the dirt his children had previously trod upon. Danny was wearing a black and white striped dress shirt and black slacks. "Can you step over here with me, please?"

"Have you found anything yet?" Danny asked in a trembling voice. His lip quivered. His arms were stiff. But the officer pulled him over near a pair of bushes away from the lights and other police units scattered throughout the scene. Numerous other officers were patrolling the house, walking in and out of the front door. Some were even jumping in and out of the hole in the side of the house, testing to see if they were to go anywhere, almost seeming to not take the situation seriously. It was unfortunate that Amity Park's police force had this much lack of care for anything, but that was the way it had been since the chief of police died.

"My babies!" shouted Sam, running out of the passenger side in her black corset and flowing skirt, rushing past the caution tape and into the forceful arms of the police force, who held her back as she tried to press through. "Get the hell off of me. I need to see my babies. Dammit, I said get off!"

"This is what I wanted to talk to you about, Mr. Fenton," the officer said slowly, "We've been out here for two hours and still haven't found anything."

"I'm just sorry I couldn't get here sooner," Danny said, "Traffic was awful. The worry as to what might have happened didn't help my driving either." Beyond the yellow tape, Sam seemed to be getting more and more frantic. Eventually, one of the officers took a tranquilizer to her and stuck her with it in the arm.

"Hey," Danny shouted, "that's not necessary!" He ran beyond the yellow tape and caught his wife as she was falling.

"Sir, we only did what was necessary," the officer explained, "She was getting irate, and we can understand that. But she can't interfere with the crime scene."

"Dammit," Danny said, "Those are our kids in there. We need to know what's going on; she's only as worried as any mother would be."

"Yes, sir," the officer explained, "we understand that, and we still need to continue our search. The problem is that the forensics team could only find their friends' footprints and not your kids. It's as if they never entered the house in the first place, so the stories we're getting aren't matching up." The officer looked over and saw his other men still practicing the supposed jump through the hole. "Men, get out of there! You're interfering with the crime scene!" He pointed to them and said, "New guys; they still don't get it."

"I don't know what to do," Danny said, looking down at a now sedate Sam, "I feel so helpless. Saving the world was one thing, but losing my kids is something that I never planned on."

"Nobody ever plans on it," the officer said, his words not helping, "Why don't you and your wife go home and get some rest, as you both obviously need it. We'll give you a call if we find anything."

Danny carried Sam back to the car, strapped her in, and drove back to their apartment. He began to wonder if Sam had any idea if this was going to happen or not, as her psychic abilities had been acting up for awhile, at least before her frequent migraines began. Sam started displaying psychic abilities around the latter years of high school and learned how to control them through college. Danny's cousin, Danielle, began displaying them around the same time for whatever reason. In fact, several of his other friends (including Gaz Membrane) began showing psychic abilities as well. He always wondered what might have been the cause of it, but neither Prof. Utonium nor Prof. Membrane could explain the phenomena, only the current science of it without the cause.

As of late, however, Sam had been having frequent nightmares about being locked in the apartment from the inside by chains and having frequent migraines which prevented her concentration on nearly anything.

Danny laid Sam on the couch, resting her head gently onto the soft, cotton pillow at one end while he sat at the other and awaited the phone call in the dark of the evening. A few moments passed, and he looked over at Sam as she lay fast asleep on her side. He ran his hand along her side and hip, trying to show her the affection she needed right now, asleep or not, and trying to take his mind off the situation.

Two hours passed. Danny lay next to Sam on the couch, arms wrapped around her from behind, having dosed off himself. Out of nowhere, the buzz from the phone collided with his eardrum. He arose in a groggy state and snatched up the phone, pressing the talk button and putting the speaker to his ear.

"Hello," Danny groaned.

"Mr. Fenton?" the gruff voice on the other end asked.

"Yes?" Danny asked rhetorically.

"This is Detective Sturm with the missing person's division," the voice said, "I want to inform you that my police unit still has not found anything on your children. We want to put out a missing person's case on them, but we need some information first."

"Absolutely," Danny said and proceeded to give the necessary information (the last time they saw them, what they were wearing, etc.). They parted on friendly terms, but Danny could only think of what may have happened or be happening to his kids at the moment. He decided, however, to go back to sleep.

The Saturday morning light beamed down through the window onto Danny and Sam. The sunbeams flew straight between the cracks in Danny's eyelids, causing them to flutter. But it was not the sun that caused him to get up but rather the telephone ringing. He dragged his upper body up and pressed the talk button.

"Hello," Danny said into the receiver.

"Danny?" the voice of his cousin asked on the other end, "Hey, it's Dani. I've really got to tell you something."

"Is it about David and Christine?"

"Yes; I know where they are."

"Where?" Danny asked nervously, "Tell me…please."

"I saw it in my dreams," Dani said, "My clairvoyance has been acting up as of late, but this one last night was the most vivid. David and Christine are in the town of Silent Hill."

"Can we meet?"

"Yes," Dani said, "Meet me at the Penny coffee house at three this afternoon and we'll discuss what has happened."

"Okay," Danny said in a slightly relieved tone but still with a sense of worry, "I'll wake up Sam, and we'll meet you there."

"Thanks," Dani said, "See you then." With that, she hung up.

Danny looked down at Sam, who was still fast asleep, and thought about what it meant to truly be in love. They had been through so much and still stuck together through thick and thin. Now, every parent's worst nightmare had become their reality. He felt as if his emotions were thrown into a blender and thrown into his brain. His heart sank, and he fell back down next to her.

Just then, Sam's body made a slight twitch. She had still not come out of her restless dreams and was obviously having some strife with them. Her mouth began to spout some strange murmur. Danny leaned in to hear what she was saying.

"Silent Hill," Sam mumbled in her half sleep.


	3. The Discord

Chapter 3 – The Discord

As soon as Dani hung up the phone, she went to the dresser to change. She put on a white t-shirt with the Ghostbusters insignia on it, the insignia's paint job differing from the original in that it looked like it was oozing, giving it a more ominous, gothic feel, along with a black jean skirt and black leather ankle boots. She then walked over to her door where hung her black leather jacket, grabbed it, and swooped it on. Checking the pockets revealed to her motorcycle keys, just what was needed to give her the feel of flying again.

Dani walked out the door of her apartment and into the poorly lit hallway. She looked at the stairs which led down to the parking lot, and at the top of the stairs stood the same girl in the blue dress from her dream. This entity looked as if she were nineteen but still having the air of someone well beyond her years. The girl neither moved nor spoke a word, and all Dani could do was just stare as their equally haunted eyes met.

Five minutes passed. Neither party's gaze left the other. In a sudden instant, the girl pointed to one of Dani's jacket pockets. Dani put her hand inside and pulled out a medallion attached to a hemp necklace. The medallion was that of Saint Christopher, patron saint of travelers. One of the priests in San Jose, California, gave it to her after she accidentally flew through his church and disrupted his service; she made amends by refilling the holy water bowls and sweeping the floors and front steps. Since she was a traveler, this priest thought it only fit to give this to her.

Dani looked back up, only to see the girl had vanished. Her mind reeled for a moment from the shock of all of this; she thought she would have been used to ghosts by now, but there was something about this girl that was off-putting to an uncomfortable degree. She looked back down at the medallion, and her mind immediately conjured the image of Sam. The clairvoyance did not let her down.

She walked downstairs, each step creaking under her boot. Upon reaching the bottom, she walked over to her Harley-Davidson VRSCDX, straddled it, and started the engine, driving off down the highway towards the coffee shop.

Riding her motorcycle allowed again for that nostalgic feeling of flying once more. Flying was not a power she lost, but in order to save her limited energy, she resorted to biking. Her thoughts at the moment, however, turned not to the extreme blasts of the wind against her face or to the ghost girl from her dream but rather a different ghost she had only encountered once, this being when he aided Danny in saving the world from the meteor. This was the same pirate ghost boy who disappeared shortly afterwards, flying back to the ghost zone. Dani wondered how he was or if he remembered her after their brief airborne collision with one another.

She reached the Penny coffee shop, which was right next to the book store; she decided to buy some time before Danny and Sam showed up. After buying a book of poetry, she walked back into the Penny, ordered some chai tea, and began reading some of the greatest (and strangest) Dada-Surrealist poets of the 1930s.

When Danny and Sam left their apartment complex, the paparazzi had already gathered around the door, yet still leaving enough room for them to get to their car. Even after one day, the news had gotten out. Very little doubt of about Sheldon with his hidden videos being behind it entered Danny's brain. He said he would leave them alone; maybe his boss just stole the footage from him. That could have been it.

For news reporters, they were pretty quiet. It was unusual that they were asking questions one at a time and taking a few minutes in between asking them. Still, that did not lessen the dead, endless melancholy in the air.

"Do you have any idea as to what happened?" one person asked.

"Can we please get the names of the investigators?" another lady asked with a sense of nervousness in her voice.

None of them really wanted to be out there. This was a horrible story to cover, money or not. The Fentons ignored them all, simply looking at the ground in silence while they got into their black Corvette. As Danny drove down the road, still saying nothing, he looked over at Sam, who was looking out the car window, wearing a black vinyl corset and a long, wavy black skirt with lace up boots. She glanced over at Danny, noticing his stare, half offended from the situation, half complimented that he still would stare at her despite their pain. She reached down and put in a Faun CD, the first song playing being "Egil Saga."

"Danny?" she asked to make him attentive to what she was saying, "I'm sorry I did what I did last night. I let my emotions get the better of me; I should have learned this from my teen years."

"No, hon," Danny said, "You did what any worried mother would have done." He smirked a little. "And that's why they didn't arrest you."

"Yeah," Sam said with a slight chuckle before feeling foolish and looking back out the window, continuing in a monotone voice, "Dammit all, whoever took them is going to pay, so help me. I just want them home. I want to see them again. I want to take them to their first Skinny Puppy concert, and you know that's a right of passage in and of itself. I want to see them dressed up for Halloween again." She looked over at him again, this time with tears in her eyes. "I want to see them during Christmas and Hanukkah, seeing the joy on their faces when they open up the presents they found under the tree and next to the menorah."

"We will," Danny said firmly, looking her in the eyes, "We'll see to it. We've gotten through so many other difficult times, right?"

"Yeah," Sam said with a smile, "Hey, at least I get a day off work to find clues, right? Tootie said she'd watch the shop."

"Really?" Danny asked, surprised, "You'd trust her with the shop? Shouldn't she be writing her newest story for the paper?"

"Well," Sam said, "Somebody greater than us obviously trusts her enough to grant her a child. That's right; Tootie's pregnant with Timmy's kid." Danny's eyes widened.

"Oh, no," he said, "More of her are spawning." Sam punched him in the arm and gave a nervous laugh.

"She said if it's a boy, she's naming it Tommy, and if it's a girl, she's naming it Tammy."

"We're here," Danny said with some relief, not wanting to hear about Tootie clones. They got out of the car, this time in slightly better spirits from having talked with each other but still feeling the contamination of loss. As they walked in the door, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn's "Letter--from the Lost Days" was playing softly through the air.

Dani saw Danny walk in, him wearing his black button up vest over a white shirt along with black dress slacks. Her cousin looked just as hansom as he always had. She waved her hand to call both him and Sam over to her table. They walked nonchalantly over to her and sat down.

"Good that you two could make it," Dani said, putting her book down, uncrossing her legs from off of the top of the table, and sitting strait up, "I've got a lot I need to tell you in terms of what I think we should do."

"Oh, I love the eighties punk look," Sam commented.

"Thanks," Dani said with a smile. She and Sam seemed to always have similar taste in nearly everything. "Here. I have something for you." She took out the saint medallion and handed it to Sam, who looked rather bewildered. "You need to keep this. I got a feeling you're going to be using it where the Fenton Thermos will fail you."

Sam, despite her growing headaches, could sense this as well. She also knew that, from touching the medallion, she needed to guard the apartment against something. It all seemed to come rushing in a pinpoint of light through the veil of pain surrounding the inner parts of her skull. Whatever was causing her headaches was about to attack the apartment; she would stand guard.

"Alright," Danny explained, "I've done some research on this town before. We have gotten several claims from people that it was haunted, but whatever team we would send in to that area either refused to report their findings or would say they found nothing."

"It doesn't always want to be found," Dani said, "Sometimes, it will surface when it wants to. Some of the reports I've read say they care not to remember what went on there and have blanked it from their minds."

"Which I what I've wondered as to whether that was the case with our team," Sam said, holding her head.

"But since the town wasn't actually reaching out and causing any problems," Danny continued, "we couldn't get license to do anything further."

"Well," Dani said, "I say we go in their without the worry of getting a ghost warrant. Let's just make a little road trip there. I know the way; it's near Toluca Lake, California. You can just follow me."

"You two, take care of yourselves," Sam said.

"You're not coming with us?" Danny asked.

"Don't worry," Sam said, "I do believe I've got business at home." With that, she gave Dani a look of understanding, who then returned it with a warm smile. "Just get our boy and girl home, okay?"

"Of course," Danny said, "Ghosts are our business after all. We'll keep them safe."

"Something tells me," Dani said, "it's not just ghosts we need to worry about."

"What are you saying?" Danny asked, "Is there something else you need to tell us? Are demons involved?"

"I don't know," Dani continued, "All I'm saying is that we need to be prepared for anything."

"Aren't we always?" Danny asked rhetorically.

"There's shit we've got to do," Sam said, "So let's get to it."

Danny took Sam home, packed for the trip, and walked back out to the car, where he saw Dani on her motorcycle.

"Ready for this?" Dani chided, "You're not going to chicken out, are you?"

"Hell, no," Danny said, "My kids need me."

"That's what I wanted to hear," Dani said, "Good to know you haven't slacked in gumption." With that, they both started their respective vehicles and began to drive into the unknown.


	4. The Prophecy

Chapter 4 – The Prophecy

"I keep having this reoccurring dream," Trixie said, slouching and putting her head in her hand in a manner of anguish.

"Care to share with me what it was about?" the doctor asked. They were sitting on the sunlit evaluation room, her rock star husband, Chester, the lead singer and guitarist of the new grunge rock band Transcendence, watching from behind the glass.

"I'm glad we came here, too," Trixie continued, "as this is part of my dream. See, I'm sitting here, having my evaluation with you, and I'm terrified as hell. My makeup isn't even done, and there's no one to tell me I'm pretty."

"Well, your husband thinks you're very pretty," the doctor said, "and he's a famous rock star. Doesn't that make you happy; do you want me to call him in?"

"No, that's fine," Trixie said, trying to sound calm but still coming across uneasy. Her words were soft and low, and she spoke slowly so as to pace herself and make sure the doctor understood what she could actually describe. "Anyways, you're standing over there at the door and looking equally as frightened, and I'm still unnerved. But, in the most recent dream, I've discovered why. There's a man. He's standing at the back of this building, looking at me. I can see him through the wall. His face is the face of pure evil. He looks like he could have been the former mayor of Amity Park, Mr. Masters, or that serial killer from Ashfield, California. You know, Walter Sullivan? He looks like a combination of them, but different. I can't really describe it." Trixie paused for a moment, looked down, then looked back up with an even more terrified look. "I hope I never see that face outside of the dream."

"And you believe," the doctor asked, "these events are going to come to pass soon?"

"Yes," Trixie said, "I can sense it. I can sense something bad coming. I think that my clairvoyance is trying to warn me of something, something that could affect us all."

"Well," the doctor said in a slightly unnerved voice, "we do have you registered as one of the psychics from 2010, but that doesn't mean your dreams have to always be prophetic. Why, the Membrane girl, of whom I've met by the way, said that not all of her dreams came true. So why worry about it until something does actually start to fall into place?" The doctor said this as he got up to go call Chester in to momentarily comfort her before she was taken back to her room.

"Yeah," Trixie said, looking down, "My dream of becoming a movie star never happened. Why should this?" The doctor gave her a light smile and walked to the door when Trixie looked up at him, realizing that he was in the exact same position from her dream. He paused for a moment and looked back at her, a look of fright on his face which she was quick to return. He did not realize he had opened the door, letting Chester peer in at their shared anguish.

The three left the room together, walked passed security, and out the door. They walked around the white stone wall and glass windows of the hospital and began to make their way to the back. Trixie walked nervously, but her husband and doctor seemed to enliven her to keep going. It seemed like every step they took lasted an eternity. Chester and the doctor showed their own fear on their face, but theirs could not match that of the dreamers.

They were nearly at the corner.

They were getting ready to round it.

That was when he appeared from behind it, the very face from Trixie's nightmare standing before her, with his gritty hair, his blood-soaked face, and his dead, lifeless eyes staring into hers.

Trixie fell on her back unconscious. Chester and her doctor were both trying to revive her as the image of this horror vanished into the air.

Vlad Plasmius floated across from Dahlia in the darkness. They looked at each other stoically, but nothing needed to be understood or felt.

"Are you pleased," Vlad asked, "with the vessels for the sacraments I have provided for you?"

"Indeed," Dahlia said, "They fit the mother and wisdom figures perfectly. The resurrection of the Crimson God is nigh, and I owe part of it to you. Thank you again for bringing me out of the Ghost Zone and back into where I am destined. Fate has decreed I am to continue my services." Vlad looked at her and wondered if fate was not so kind to her if she would have ended up somewhere else besides Heaven or the Ghost Zone, like, say, the plane of crying and gnashing of teeth. Then again, with the way this place looked and felt, she was probably already there, with him being along for the ride.

"And the mother of this god?" Vlad asked.

"Heather Mason," Dahlia said, "had eluded us, but the shade of Alessa still lingers throughout this town. Despite the lack of a corporal body, we can still use her to birth the Crimson God."

"Very well then," Vlad said, "Just remember what you promised me. I am not one to be crossed like that Kaufmann fellow."

"Certainly not," Dahlia responded, floating closer and maintaining a cold yet understanding look, "Kaufmann was just a simple pawn, unlike you. You, my dear, are a man of much more esteem and power."

"There could be another problem," Vlad said, "The father is coming for the children, and he's not one to be taken lightly."

"No matter," Dahlia said, "He won't make it far."

Vlad smiled. He already had a plan.

"I shall send Walter to him," he said with a chuckle.

"You brought him back as well?" Dahlia asked, "I did not realize he was in the Ghost Zone."

"I was surprised, too," Vlad said, "but I took the opportunity where it lay."

"Everything…" Dahlia began.

"…Is going according to plan," Vlad finished. With that, they both floated into the darkness and vanished.


	5. The Arrival

Chapter 5 – The Arrival

Having taken a momentary rest at a roadside gas station near Toluca Lake, California, Danny and Danielle stood and leaned against the back of Danny's car, drinking some Mexican soda they had gotten from inside and watching the sun set over the distant mountains.

Danny held his soda in one hand and a piece of paper in the other.

"What's that you've got?" Dani asked.

"This stupid note," Danny said, holding it up to her, "Some crazy put it on my windshield. I think they had good reason though." She looked down at the note, which read, "If you know how to drive, then you should learn how to park!" She looked behind her at the car and noticed it was parked at an obscure angle that moved over into another space.

She knew Danny. It wasn't like him to park like this. The problem was obvious.

He was looking down at the ground.

"Hey," Dani said, "We'll find them, okay? That's why we're out here."

"Yeah," Danny said, looking up at her, "I know we will. It's just…" He paused for a moment. "It's just I wish I could have spent more time with them. Working as both a NASA rocket engineer and a ghost hunter really weighs into the schedule. If I was there, with them, maybe they wouldn't have disappeared."

"Danny, you can't blame yourself," Dani said, "You can't expect to protect them all the time."

"But it's not just that," Danny responded, "I should have been there for them more often. Dammit, I wish I could have made time."

"Relax," Dani said sympathetically, "It'll be okay. I promise. We'll find them."

"Yeah," Danny said after a moment.

"Hey, do you remember that game PaRappa the Rapper?" Dani asked, taking a drink of the soda and wincing at the blandness of it.

"Yeah," Danny said, "I do."

"When I say boom, boom, boom…" Dani began.

"…You say bam, bam, bam."

"No pause in between."

"Come on; let's jam." They both laughed.

"It's good to know you haven't lost your sense of humor, either," Dani commented.

"Thanks," Danny said, "So, how have things been in the world of you?"

"Well," Dani said, "The job hasn't been so bad. I don't mind being stuck in an office for a few hours a day. I still go out driving on weekends, tough. Johnny and I broke up a few months ago. But we're still trying to be friends."

"I was wondering about him," Danny said, "He's the brother of those two famous scientist girls, isn't he?"

"Yeah," Dani said, "and if I had another chance, I'd go out with him again. I've also been…" She paused. "Never mind."

"You're thinking about Youngblood?" Danny asked.

"How did you know?" Dani asked back with a sense of surprise.

"I saw how you looked at him whenever he left," Danny said, "I don't really see what you'd see in him, though. He's pretty crazy."

"Hey," Dani said, "I can't help it. But that's my love life right now; I'm very conflicted between them." It was obvious that Dani wanted to change the subject. "So, how are you and Sam?"

"We're fine," Danny responded, "Sam's been suffering these horrible headaches as of late. She'll still get a psychic vision every once in awhile, but the headaches have been preventing those as of late."

"I think it has something to do with what's been going on," Dani stated and started pouring her foul tasting soda on the ground; it was flat and only 44 cents, so she was not trying to be wasteful. "That's why I gave her the saint medallion. It's going to help her fight whatever's in your apartment."

"So my apartment's haunted and I didn't know it?" Danny asked with a groan.

"Relax," Dani reassured him, "She'll take care of it. Anyways, we need to get back on the road."

"Alright, then," Danny said, "Let's get to it." They both got back to their respective vehicles and started the engines. The car and bike pulled away from the gas station and continued down the road, Dani's bike leading the way.

They drove for hours. The sun was now a memory, faded behind the mountains to reveal the nothingness and the stars of the night. There was no beautiful moon tonight, so the only sources of real light on the road were those of the car and bike's headlights. The eeriness of driving into the unlimited gulf of the unknown is what gave both the Phantoms the fear of the unnamed and unnamable lurking within that blackness.

They made it through the town of Toluca Lake without any problems. Upon leaving the town, just several miles away (they took the "closed" road), they began to pick up what seemed to be radio interference. This was interrupting Danny's much love for the fact that this was the first time in forever that they were playing The Door's epic masterpiece, "The End", on the radio. The static did eventually pass, allowing the song's haunting melody to drone into his ear as he drove through the darkness, Dani still ahead of him. While driving, there seemed to be a thin mist that surrounded the car, the light reflecting off of the whiffs of solid air.

Further on, however, that mist became a thick fog. Even with the headlights, Danny could see less and less of his dear cousin's bike. The song was nearly over when the radio began to pick up static again. Danny looked down to try and adjust it, yet still only receiving static on every station. He glanced back up to see that his cousin's motorcycle was gone. He tried calling her; the phone rang several times before being answered by what sounded like this.

"Dan…" Dani's incoherent voice on the other end said, "Where are…I thin…Can't…did they…" Danny hung up the phone, seeing it was useless to continue the conversation when what was being said could not be understood. All he could do now was follow this road and hope it would lead him to where he needed to go. When all logic failed, he trusted his gut.

Just then, he could see, crashed against the side of several jagged rocks, Dani's motorcycle. His heart started quivering like a live fish in a hot skillet. Without slowing down, he looked to see if he could see any sign of Dani, only seeing her vehicle without a body. This, however, distracted him from the road and disallowed him to see that he himself was about to crash. The impact was so sudden that he didn't have time to phase out and go incorporeal, sending his head straight into the steering wheel and knocking him out cold.

Danny must have been out for hours, for when he unclosed his eyes, he could see that the world outside was a little brighter. He lifted his aching head and saw that this light of day (if one would call it that) was still overshadowed by the stifling fog.

The front end of his car was now scrunched in against the large rock on the side of the hill the road wound around. The hood looked like a wave patter one found in the modern corporate art they put in front of major office buildings in New York. From under it, steam was rising. It looked like he was not going anywhere for awhile.

Danny got out of the car and surveyed the area. He ran over to the fallen Harley to see if he could find Dani. Fortunately, yet unfortunately at the same time, she was nowhere to be found. He tried to see if shed dropped anything, but nothing was amiss. Seeing no other options, he decided to continue into town on foot.

He walked for what felt like an eternity. It was only fifteen minutes, but it felt longer. At length, he came upon something though the fog, a huge sign off to the side of the road.

It read "Welcome to Silent Hill" across its face, faded and smeared with grime.

Danny continued on. He began to quicken his pace, knowing he was in the right place now. Sparing no time, he ran with full force down the road. This road then turned into a street, Bachman Road to be precise, as Danny noticed from reading the corner signs. The other street listed was that of Finny Street. He continued strait down the road he was going.

No sooner had he gotten halfway down the block when he noticed two familiar figures walking hand in hand at the crossroads. These two figures looked to be none other than David and Christine.

"Hey," Danny shouted, "David, Christine, it's dad! Wait!" He raced forward to catch up to them, but all they did in response was run to his right down Matheson Street, as the sign on the corner pointed out. Danny turned likewise and followed the children another block. The two then rounded another corner, down Levin Street, which Danny was quick to follow.

While running after the children, Danny saw a few strange things that caused his mind to wonder. If this was indeed a ghost town, why were there several parked cars along the side of the roads? In addition to this, looking further down this road, passed the children, Danny saw through the fog what looked like a humanoid figure only without arms and looking as if its steps were in staggers. This could not concern him, as he had to catch his kids.

He did, however, try to ignore the sounds of cries and whispers he heard down each alleyway.

They completely passed by Bloch Street and continued to run all the way down to Bradbury Street, where they suddenly stopped at the crossing point. Danny slowed his pace, his lungs feeling as if they would burst and litter his ribcage with their remains. This was his state of mind at the moment; there was something about this place that gave him horrid thoughts such as these. A flash washed over the children, and they then appeared to be in the same ghost form Danny could turn into. It was then that Danny knew it must be them. The only question remained regarding why they were running from him.

David and Christine then flew straight up into the foggy air, beyond the roofs of the buildings.

"Time to go ghost," Danny said and transformed into his ghost form, his new outfit fitting him well. He then ran to the point where they stood and flew into the air after them. Despite the fog, he could clearly see his two children flying upwards.

The problem was, however, that they seemed to be flying much faster than he was, despite the fact that they could not do this at home. The harder Danny pushed himself, the further away they seemed to get. He then looked down and noticed that he was floating back down to the ground, despite his efforts to push himself upwards.

It was not that his children were flying upwards; they were stationary in the sky.

Before his feet touched the ground, he could hear what sounded like an air raid siren blaring in the distance. While it seemed unusual again coming from a ghost town, Danny could not help but get a feeling, with each blare, that his overly stressed lifestyle was ostracizing his children from him, not this town. He felt, as the noise droned on and on, that the discord with them had caused him to forget the problems they could be facing at school, especially anyone who would be hurting them or bullying them.

Danny's breath released from his mouth. What was unusual about it this time was that the breath was hot, as though it could catch on fire. His breath was cool whenever a ghost was around, so what could this mean?

As the noise continued, everything faded to black, as though night had crept in and corrupted the familiar concept of light. Danny could not see his hand in front of his face, so he allowed that hand to produce for him a green light. This fear of other children in his children's lives was not going away, but that did not stop him from focusing. A moment later, he would wish he had not created such light, for when he did, he immediately saw what looked like a horde of what looked to be children at first began walking towards him. Upon further examination, these things had grey stumps where their heads should have been and what looked like a knife coming out of their right hands. There was a chattering noise among them that chilled the marrow in Danny's bones.

He only prayed that if he could not fly that he could still use some offensive power against these horrors.


	6. The Survivor

Chapter 6 – The Survivor

The creatures, clicking and hissing, yet leaving Danny wondering what was making it, as they had no heads, moved closer to him, flanking him from all directions. Danny held the green light out towards them and flung it at one of the beasts, knocking it over in a green smoldering mass.

"They still work," Danny said with a shaking, yet slightly relieved voice. He held out his arm again to the closest grey child thing and began to charge another blast. He was, however, met with a surprise when his ghost bolt terminated in a short burst rather than a tremendous ray he was hoping for. "Dammit. So that's limited, too?"

There was only one thing left to try, which was to fly again. He jumped into the air and found himself floating, for a moment, above the demons before landing on what was once the nearby sidewalk (it now consisted entirely of metal grating and occasional rusty sheets of metal). This led him to the conclusion that despite not being able to fly, he could still jump long distances. This did not stop him from firing a few more bolts at the creatures. Several of them fell, but more of them seemed to regroup in the fallen's places. Behind him was a clothing store, which he desperately ran towards the door of. The door itself was covered in rust and blood and, like the rest of the area, it had changed as well, boarded up with blood-soaked wood and newspaper. He tried to turn the knob, but the lock was jammed.

The creatures were now overwhelmingly close to him. Danny turned to fire more blasts but that would be to no avail.

There was a sudden sense of sharp pain in his stomach. He looked down to see that one of the creatures had stuck their knives in the vicinity. The scream he made echoed throughout the empty blackness and on into nothingness. He let out a few more as more of the creatures began doing the same, green ectoplasm coming from his wounds.

The pain from the creature's knives was so unbearable, Danny could not help but fall to the metal grating. There was something written in blood on a newspaper near him, and before he shut his eyes, he was able to read that it said, "Suffer time with your children, Danny, or shall we cause them to suffer?" His heart sank as the pain sank into his body.

Everything slipped away and went black.

Dani was softly singing the tune to the Snake River Conspiracy song "You and Your Friend" while she patched up Danny's wounds with the gauze she carried in her jacket in Neely's Bar. She was doing this while kneeling next to the couch she had laid Danny on. Danny's eyes were beginning to open, giving him a fuzzy sense of the world around him. He was, however, able to see something written on the wall and the face of his dear cousin.

Dani stopped singing for a minute.

"You're awake," she said with a bit of relief and a smile.

"Dani," Danny said in a groggy voice, "Is that you?"

"Who did you expect?" Dani asked playfully sarcastic, "Tobin Bell in a speedo?"

"Given how crazy this place is," Danny began, "seeing a freaky guy like him would be a relief." He sat up in a daze and looked at her. "But how did you get here. I saw your bike crashed against some rocks. I crashed my car near you."

"See," she began to explain, "When I came to, I began walking around in a daze. With the combination of a sore head and the fog, I guess I didn't see your truck. I found myself in the town, but once I started walking the streets, I felt this sense that I was walking in a circle. It was as if the town itself was doing it on purpose, to confuse me. Then, the siren rang, and things got weirder from there. Did you hear it?" It sounded like she was starting to ramble, trying to not remember something she had seen. She paused for a minute before beginning again. "Anyways, whenever the siren sounded again, things turned back to normal, and I found you on the sidewalk, out cold with a few minor cuts. I took you back here to…"

"Wait a minute," Danny interrupted, "Minor? They were a lot worse than minor the last time I checked."

"Well, can't deny what I saw," Dani responded, "It's the town. It plays tricks on the mind." She reached over and put the last piece of tape on the patch on Danny's chest.

"Are your powers limited, too?" Danny asked.

"I don't know," Dani said, "I haven't tried to use them. I'm worried I'll lose my stability again. But if yours are, mine are." She got up and walked over to the counter, picking up a large piece of paper. "I found this map here. It could guide us to where we might need to go to find David and Chris." She brought it over to him. "See, here we are, and I found right here on Sanders Street."

"Sanders Street?" Danny asked bewildered. "Last time I remember, I was on Bradbury Street. If that's the case, we're on the south side of the lake now. We started out at the north side."

"Again, I'm just as weirded out by all of this as you are," Dani said, "But we're here now and Brookhaven Hospital is circled on the map. So, I think we should at least try and search there. I can feel it." She smiled. "Come on, Danny. When has my clairvoyance let me down?" He returned the smile and stood up with her. They were about to leave before Danny turned around to see what was written on the wall. It read, "There was a HOLE here. It's gone now." Danny had no idea what that meant but had a feeling it might have been for someone else to read. But maybe it was for him as well; maybe there was a hole in his heart before he came here, and maybe it was beginning to be filled by his remorse for losing his kids. He was not sure, but all he could think about was heading where his guiding cousin said he should go.

They walked out into the streets again, this time with a slower, more relaxed pace.

"So this town really is filled with demons," Danny said, "The stories were true."

"I had no idea, really," Dani said in a voice of disappointment, "My clairvoyance doesn't tell me everything."

"The last time I read about anything demon related," Danny said, continuing to walk next to her down Katz Street, "was concerning the Orlando Horror. The thing was seen by dozens of people. A young boy with a large head was reported as the person who brought it to the media's attention. And get this, the guy who ended up killing it was supposedly the 777 Killer of San Jose. You know, the one who couldn't be caught?"

"Yeah," Dani said, "Wasn't he acquitted?"

"Yep," Danny said, "Even married now, to that fantasy novel illustrator, Devi D."

"Wow," Dani replied, shocked but only a little, "Everyone needs love though, even psycho murderers." Upon saying that, her thoughts went straight back to both Johnny and Youngblood, wondering how they were and if they thought of her. She wanted to take out her cell phone and call Johnny at least, but the signal was still messed up, as she had tried it earlier.

They had passed Munson St. when they saw, through the fog, that something wasn't right about this road.

"Oh no," Dani said and began running forward. Danny followed suit. The road, as it turned out, was broken up, and the earth below it extended down into a seemingly endless valley of fog. "Great. What do we do now?"

"Let me see the map," Danny said. She handed it to him with a hint of frustration. "We'll go back up Munson Street and pass by Rosewater Park on Nathan Avenue. We'll have no problem taking Caroll Street."

Just then, they both looked up to see, back the way the came, what looked like armless figures lumbering towards them, twitching occasionally. Once the things got closer, they could see that the creatures were indeed nothing but a torso, a faceless head, and two scrawny, lumbering legs. Danny and Dani's breath began to heat again, cueing them both to get ready for battle.

"Going ghost," Danny said. With that, he transformed into his ghost form yet again. He looked over at Dani, who stood petrified with fear, whether from the creatures or from actually using her powers was unclear.

"Going ghost," Dani said, with a shaking voice, and turned into her ghost form. They faced the oncoming terrors, prepared to fight their way to the hospital.


	7. The Nurse

Chapter 7 – The Nurse

It must be said also that some of these things were lying down as well as wobbling towards them. The ones that were indeed lying, however, moved at an increased pace than the standing ones, scurrying towards Danny and Danielle like little rats after fresh garbage. The sounds they made were not so different but rather sounded something as that of a rodent squeak mixed with scraping metal.

"Ready for this?" Danny asked.

"Hell, yeah," Dani said, sounding only a tad unsure, "Lets rock." And with that, they both jumped into the air, over a cluster of these weird walking bodies. Some of the ones nearest to them leaned their fleshy bodies upward and, from their chest, fired a fluid that looked like hot, steaming bile. It was so distilled that some of it seemed to come out in mist, as that of spray from a can. Fortunately, the Phantoms had floated high enough to evade the blast and landed a little beyond the clusters of these things, only to see a few more in the path of their destination. Upon landing, they immediately charged up a few short blasts that knocked over the creatures, allowing both of them to break into a run and conserve ghost energy.

Yet, as these two ran, the fallen creatures let out a grating screech and began wiggling after them. Fortunately, the Phantoms were faster, and it was no time at all before they set foot on Nathan Avenue.

Danny and Dani both swung themselves around to the left, facing more thick fog. Since the monsters behind them seemed to have given up on them, or at least were struggling to catch up, they began to slow their pace. As they ran, they thought they heard a harsh grating sound, as that of two car parts continually scraping together and amplified by some gargantuan distorting speaker. There was also the occasional noise of what sounded like factory machines, which would drone on for a few seconds and then abruptly stop.

"I feel like I'm in that movie Eraserhead," Danielle said as they continued down the road. For a few minutes, the only sounds they both heard were the blowing of wind and the clamping of their feet against the ground. Eventually, they found themselves near what looked like a gas station. There was a car with a pipe sticking out of the engine and two pumps next to it. To catch their breath, they stopped here for a moment, Danielle leaning against the pump.

"Are you okay?" Danny asked.

"Yeah," Dani said, gasping, "I'll be fine." She looked across the street to see what looked like a humanoid figure leaning over another and twitching about like it was fiercely gnawing on it as a cat would a mouse. The twitching figure seemed to look up at Danielle, fell over onto its back, and scurried away into the fog.

"Danny," Danielle said with a hint of nervousness in her voice.

"What is it?" Danny asked back.

"I'm just a little creeped out here," she said honestly.

"I know," Danny said, "So am I. But we've got to keep moving." With that they broke back into a run, making a sharp left turn towards the hospital.

All of the sudden, they heard this hideous screeching noise which sounded like someone continually scraping a knife along a rusty surface. It grated upon both of their ear drums, but they knew they had to keep moving. They eventually saw what was making it through the fog as it got louder, this thing that was floating in the air and looked like two grimy mannequin torsos put together with spinning blades on their heads and sides.

"How could a thing like that make such a screech?" Dani asked herself.

The thing began to fly at them, buzzing just passed Danielle's head and nearly hitting Danny's. Both fired blasts from their hands at the thing, causing it to let out a screech, but that still did not stop it from its noise or flight. Instead it flew right back at them, this time barely hitting Danny and scratching Danielle's arm, causing her to bleed a bit of green ectoplasm.

"Ugh," Danielle said, in pain.

"You okay?" Danny asked, catching up to her.

"Yeah," Danielle said in a hurry, "Let's keep moving." With that, they kept running. Danny looked over his shoulder and fired a few more blasts from his hand, eventually knocking the thing out of the air. Still, as they ran, more of the flying horrors joined and began chasing them down the street.

Up ahead, finally, they were able to see the curve of the wall next to the sidewalk that made its way around to the front door of the hospital. They both made a sharp right turn to get through the alcove to said double doors. Before they ran in, they saw something, written in read on the wall.

It said, "All of our bad parts live here; take heed that you don't upset them," with an arrow pointing to the door. They ran in, despite this notice; it was better than being minced by those pendulum dummy things. Upon entering, they powered down to save energy. Danielle felt a little sick to her stomach but tried to keep herself composed.

What greeted them was darkness, darkness all around. They waited for a minute to both catch their breath and to let their eyes adjust. Unfortunately they had no such luck with the latter case.

"Can you see anything?" Danny asked.

"No," Danielle said, "But I think there's something in here with us." Danny then let out a breath that he could just barely see through the almost nonexistent light. He held up his hand and generated a green ball of light.

Out of the dark, around the corner, a figure approached. It was that of a blonde woman, a nurse, with a white dress and a small red coat.

"Oh," the lady said, "Thank God you're here."

"Who," Danny asked, hesitantly and with stutters, "Who are you?"

"My name is Lisa," the nurse said in a calm voice fitting for a caregiver, "You're two of the Fentons, right?"

"Yes," Danny said, "You've heard about us from the media."

"No," she said, "I don't get word of very much anymore."

"But that freak you work for mentioned us?" Danielled interjected.

"Yes," Lisa said surprised, "but I really don't want to talk about him. How did you know?"

"Let's just say I have my gifts," Danielle responded, wanting to tack on the last phrase, "or curses."

"Anyways," Lisa said, "I wanted to run into you two to give you this." She handed Danny the map of the hospital. "It's the least I can do to help you find your kids and make my little stabs at Vateil's reign over me. Now, hurry. You're kids are in danger." With that, she ran to the reception office door right in front of them, ran through it, and slammed it behind her.

"Wait," Danny said, walking after her, "Where are they?" He opened the door to find the reception office room was empty, save for a desk with loads of paper work and two filthy filing cabinets. Danny looked at the floor where Lisa had tread and found that the path was lined with drops of coagulated blood.

"You do realize she was a ghost, right?" Danielle asked.

"Yes," Danny said, "but not like a ghost from the ghost zone. She seemed more human."

"She's not from the ghost zone," Danielle said, looking down at the ground, "She's trapped in her own private Hell." She looked up and changed the subject. "Does the map have any markings?" Danny was still holding his hand up but then rejoiced that he would have to no longer when he found a pocket flashlight on the desk. He picked it up, turned its fortunately working light on, and examined the map.

…………………………………….

It was a typical evening in the Ghost Zone Asylum. Miss Box Lunch was getting irritated by the amount of people coming in to see loved ones. All she wanted to do was go into the real world to visit her human gamer boyfriend, Iggins, and take turns playing Vampire Piggy Hunter 14. Instead, she was working overtime. Hey, it was more money, right? That is what she had to tell herself just to make it through the night.

Her evening changed when she saw Dr. Spectra walk through the door; she had not expected to see her here at such an hour. She approached the counter, her red dress moving with her body perfectly.

"Hey, Box Lunch," Spectra said, "I'm here to see Mrs. McLain."

"Beware!" Box Lunch shouted. She paused a moment and got a sheepish look on her face. "Sorry; it just kind of came out. Habit, you know."

"It's okay," Spectra said.

"Yeah," Box Lunch said, "I'll just buzz you in. Oh, how is your husband doing, the Ghost Writer? Is he still writing?"

"Yeah," Spectra said with a smile, "He's got a new Christmas story coming up."

"Good to hear," Box Lunch said, returning it, "Well good luck with her. She's been a bit cranky today." She pressed the button, buzzing the door to let Spectra in, who proceeded down the hallway, reviewing the paperwork from the envelope she had been carrying under her arms.

After she got married, Spectra went back to school and got her doctorate in psychology. She decided it was a futile effort to continue work in the Earth world and tried a more legit route in the Ghost Zone.

She met her husband shortly after the meteor incident, and the two hit it off quite well. One manipulated through gazes while the other through the power of the written word. Their love grew quickly, and, in two years, they were married.

Hey, at least she had some male figure around, since Bertrand disappeared.

Spectra saw Skulker standing at the door of Ember, watching his wife rest on the bed in her straight jacket, the medicine having calmed her down a little bit. With how large and frightening he was, no one dared tell him visiting hours were over. He turned and saw Spectra coming his way.

"How much longer?" he asked rhetorically in a sullen voice. "My nights without her are becoming unbearable."

"Don't worry," Spectra said, "We'll get her to come around." She then opened the door. This prompted Ember to sit up. Ember looked at Spectra, a wide-eyed, haunted stare with drool unnoticeably coming out of her mouth. "Ember, honey, you remember me, right? Your friend, Spectra. They said you'd only talk to me."

"I knew," Ember said in a mumble, the medication slowly dissipating, "you'd believe me, or at least that you'd listen."

"Of course," Spectra said with a short, nervous laugh, both out of pity and shock that her friend would be like this, "That's what friends are for, right?"

"Yeah," Ember spoke slowly, but her speech was becoming less slurred, "I keep having these dreams. But, eventually, they weren't dreams. I started seeing him in the daylight hours. Across the cliffs, through each door, through the green highways, still turning that wheel of his. He made that woman cry. She may have deserved it, but it's so sad. Then he showed up, the one with the iron triangle for a head. I saw him once outside, when I tried to kill that Walker guy. He was one of them. I could swear it." Her voice slowly got louder. "He was with the pyramid headed thing. I knew it." She twitched a bit, lowering back down into almost a wisper. "But something's coming. Something big that could affect both the Earth realm and the Ghost Zone. Literally bring Hell on Earth. Don't you hear me?" She got louder and stood up, walking towards Spectra, who already looked very disturbed. "Don't you understand? THE CRIMSON GOD IS COMING! SAMAEL WILL BE RESURRECTED! THE ROOM WILL AWAKEN!"

No sooner had the rambling started when the orderlies rushed into the room, turned Ember over, and shot her in the leg with a tranquilizer. Spectra walked out of the room. Skulker was slouched over, sitting on the floor with is back to the wall.

"She didn't ever act like this before," he said. He still had a strong, unshaken tone despite his sorrow.

"I know," Spectra said, looking away, "It pains me to see her like this. I knew she had picked up the psychic or clairvoyant powers all those girls and women were getting over a decade ago. See, it didn't just start at 2010. A human girl named Gaz Membrane got them a little before that. But then it spread to everyone else; Ember was one of the lucky ones to get it I guess. But now, she, along with many other women, has ended up here." She paused. "I really do respect you, Skulker, and I wanted to be honest with you about this without hiding anything. Your wife is not the only one who's displaying these symptoms and visions."

"Knowing this doesn't help anything," Skulker grumbled. He stood up, a slight snarl on his mouth. "I'm going home. I'll visit her again tomorrow." He turned to go.

"Of course," Spectra said, stepping after him, "And I know your mind is wrapped around this, but try to do something to distract yourself for a little while. You need to stay sane yourself. I'm headed home myself; I need to see my husband after this."

"Sure," Skulker said, "Give him my regards, will you?" He then proceeded down the hall, cold and alone, his love locked away from him in a padded cell.


	8. Hole in the Wall or Hole in the Head?

Chapter 8 – Hole in the Wall or Hole in the Head?

Sam had gotten out of the shower a few hours ago and was now laying on the couch, talking to Mr. and Mrs. Fenton on the phone, her head still pounding.

"Let us know," Maddie said, "how we can help, okay? These are our grandkids that are missing."

"Yeah," Jack followed up frantically, "We'll be there to kick the ass of any ghost who kidnapped our little Davey or Chrissie."

"I know how you feel," Sam said with an empathetic, longing voice, the voice of a mother who cared about her kids, "But Danny and Danielle are already on it. I already told my mom and dad all about it. I really hope all four of them are okay. I've read up on this freaky town they're in." Her tone of melancholy cannot be described. It was obvious to both the grandparents she was not in good spirits and really wanted them both to come home. Sam was a good mommy; they always knew she would be.

"Well, just call us back if you and Danny need anything," Maddie said desperately.

"Yeah," Jack said, "We'll give you anything you need."

"I understand, and thank you," Sam said with an air of caring, "I'll keep you posted." They said their goodbyes and hung up. Sam lay her head back down on the pillow in her black Cruxshadows shirt, of which she got at Wave Gotik Treffen, and pleather pants. She rested her head with the sullen air of a mother hen without her chicks. Her eyes carried the rest of a thousand ages, her head still pulsing with the fire of a thousand inquisitive tortures.

The phone rang again.

She answered.

"Sam!" the high-pitched voice of Tootie sounded, "how are you this evening?"

"Hey Tootie," Sam said, clutching her head, "How did things go at the store today?"

"They went well," Tootie said, "We sold out of My Chemical Romance and the Epoxies."

"Yeah," Sam said, not surprised.

"Don't worry, Sam," Tootie said, "I'm worried about you little ones too."

"Of course," Sam said, "you and the media."

Tootie paused for a minute.

"They're in Silent Hill, aren't they?" Tootie asked.

"Yeah," Sam said, surprise surrounding her tone, "How did you know?"

"Oh, I have my ways."

"You're one of the psychics, too," Sam asked, knowing the answer, "aren't you?"

"Yeah," Tootie said casually, "since twenty ten."

"I'm actually not surprised," Sam said, "You're smart enough that you're not in a mental institution yet and you know things are going to happen ahead of time."

"To be honest," Tootie said, "I think my husband wished for it. See, he and whatever force it is that lets him have whatever he wants had to have made me this way. He didn't have to say what it was, but he said it would help the lives of our own children after they were born…" Tootie's voice started to break up as static filled the phone. Sam looked around and noticed the walls started to bleed this black goo. She got up, staggering because her head hurt, and walked over to where it was coming out. It smelled like the blood of the dead. She saw something on the wall above it that looked like a face. The mouth was open wide and the eyes were turned as though to suggest an expression of agony unknown to mankind, the torture one would find in the dungeons of the ancient pharaohs where Nyarlathotep, the dark ruler of Egypt, reigns with an iron fist.

All of the sudden, her entrails fell out into a bloody mass on the floor.

The large intestine was mixing itself with her gull bladder, and her stomach acid leaked out onto the floor, burning the carpet and giving off an odious stench no human being should sniff.

She stared at this sight for a minute, feeling the pain from the loss of her organs, her nerve endings firing with each loss.

She bent down, picked them up off the floor, and put them back into herself. Her pain went away thereafter.

"Beware," a bellowing echo of a voice behind her said. She turned around to see that the face on the wall was talking to her, its mouth moving and casing the paint to peel off and fall to the floor where her stomach had previously burned. Just then, the color seemed to fade from the room, leaving everything in shades of black and white.

"If you are not in haste," the face continued, "your children will suffer the same fate as we have. Number twenty, Christine Fenton, the mother reborn. Number twenty one, David Fenton, the receiver of wisdom. Beware."

Sam walked back over to the couch, laid down, and fell asleep on the pillowsheawokefrom this bizarre nightmare in no time at all, her head throbbing in pain as it always had. There was something odd, however, about how she was lying; her arm was outstretched, a pen resting in her hand over a profusely scribbled on paper atop the coffee table.

"What the hell?" She asked in both reference to her dream and to the writing. She sat up, twisted her legs to face the coffee table, and picked up the note to read it.

It read something to this effect: "The faceless piece of metal will feed the malnourished. Writhing bodies have made their stand and walked. The hounds of Tindalos howl beyond space and time and dwell within the town of Silent Hill. Xuchilbara will return and bring her paradise. Lobsel Vith shall guide them.The feast of Y'Golonac will begin. E uh Shub Niggurath ngaa ryla neb shoggoth. Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn…" After that, the rest was somewhat illegible, except for the last word, Azathoth.

Sam now remembered why this was here. After she got off the phone with Tootie, she did indeed lay down to sleep but grabbed a pen and paper to try and channel her dreams into words or to get more information from it. After all, she still did have some psychic talent, despite the migraines. This was nothing like her dream, however, and rather than enlightening her on Danny and Danielle's progress, further put her in agitated spirits.

She looked up and turned her head to try to clear the pain, only to have it hurt worse. What she saw, however, took her mind from the pain and sent a chill to her spine.

The front door of the apartment was covered in chains, attached to metal hoops that hung from the wall and sealed with heavy locks. Who had been in to do something like that without having woken her? There was something written on the door but was too small to see.

Could all of this be another dream? Was she losing her mind like so many young women were in this epidemic?

Sam got up and walked over to the door. In what looked like blood, the graffiti read, "Don't go out – Walter." Shaking in every nerve, she tried gripping the handle. If the door opened, maybe she could slip through the chains. The lock, however, seemed broken.

She ran over to the top of the chest of drawers, pulled from a box her silver revolver she tried to keep out of sight from the kids and fired several shots at each of the locks. This effort also proved futile. She then raced over to one of the windows and tried to open it, but the latches looked to have rusted shut. She fired another few rounds at the glass, but the glass had not even a scratch.

She counted her shots. She had fired more than six. How could she have fired more than six without reloading? Upon viewing the chambers, none of the bullets had been fired.

Just then, a loud crash came from the laundry room. Sam ran to investigate what could have caused it, grabbing the Fenton thermos and saint medallion Dani had given her (even if she wasn't Catholic, she knew it must still be important). She opened the door and saw, on the wall complimentary to the washer, a large hole surrounded by red glyphs. She looked on the wall opposite to the washer and dryer and saw more red graffiti, this time saying in large letters, "To Hell," with an arrow pointing to the hole.

Looking back to the hole, immediately there came rushing visions David and Christine facing a similar hole and climbing through it, finding themselves in what looked like some dilapidated factory but with the smell of dead blood. Once the visions had ended, Sam thought she could hear whispering beyond the dark portal, whispers she thought sounded like her children, but without the clarity of what was being said.

She picked up the axe from right next to the door, holstering her gun and the thermos in her pocket and pants. Who knows what she was going to encounter in there? She then put her foot on the edge of the portal, and before climbing in, looked back through the opened door of the laundry room the living area.

"Oh, Danny," She sullenly moaned, "I hope you're okay. I hope the kids are okay." Turning back to the darkness, she climbed through.


	9. The Will of the Wisp

Chapter 9 – The Will of the Wisp/Echoes of Evil/Bad Reflections

Christine and David cowered together next to the pinball machine in the game room of the Riverside Motel after having run all night from the things in the street. David was the first to wake up and noticed that his sister was coming around. She turned her head and looked around the room, half in a daze, yet still feeling the anxiety of all that had gone on that night. This was their only place of shelter, and she needed the security that there was nothing there.

"Are they gone?" David asked, knowing his sister could sense things like this better than he could.

"Yeah," she said, relieved, "They're all gone."

"What were they?" David asked rhetorically, "They weren't at all like the ghosts mom and dad fight."

"Demons," Christine answered with a chill, "the same ones we hear about in the church and synagogue. There are some ghosts here; I sensed a ghostly presence off of that girl."

"Which reminds me," David began, "what do you think she wants anyway? Since we've been following her, she's lead us to nothing but those freakish monsters. I mean, we could make our own Cloverfield movie if I had brought my camera."

"Heh," Christine said, trying to make light of the situation, "That was a good movie wasn't it."

David smiled and said, "Yeah… 'Something else, also terrible.'" They both laughed; neither one of them really knew what else to do but joke around.

"Nah, but seriously," Christine said, "I have a strong feeling that girl is trying to help us in some way, and my feelings are generally correct. You know, I did get whatever mom and all the girls at school have."

"Yeah," David said, "that is a bit of a relief. By the way, is Micky's mom out of the hospital yet? I always thought his mom was cool, even if she was mean sometimes."

"She's out now," Christine said, cringing at the very suggestion that her brother thought Vicky Chang was cool, let alone that she was out of the hospital, "That's why Micky's crying out for attention so much. His dad has to take care of his mom while she's home."

"That makes sense," David says, "No wonder he's become such a jerk."

"Alright," Christine said, standing to her feet, "We better keep moving."

"Yeah," David said, also getting up, "but where do we go from here?"

"It's marked here on the map I picked up," Christine said, holding the town map up. There was a circle around the Midwich Elementary School, which was just down the street from their location. "Every other place we tried has been blocked off by a ditch. Maybe this'll help. Maybe it's from that girl."

The two thus proceeded out of the room and through the iron gates of the motel. The air was still cool, and fog grew thick around the sidewalks and rooftops. The street itself seemed to provide a clearer path, yet still terminated with more fog. Yet, their path was clear, and they proceeded towards their goal. They ran along the dark asphalt of Midwich Street, their shoes clamping and making echoes down the vastness of the road. Christine began to get a bad feeling, along with a tremendously pounding headache, yet she continued to run. Out of the fog came the image of something that looked like a skinned cow, yet its head and forelegs were dragging across the ground, its hind legs alone agonizingly pushing it along.

"What the heck is that?" David asked softly, trying not to draw too much attention.

"I don't know," Christine said in a normal tone, seeming as if in a daze, "but I almost feel sorry for it. The poor thing." Just then, the thing let out a roar and lunged straight for her, flailing its fat body and limp neck like a giant, lifeless turkey.

"Look out!" David called out and grabbed for her, pulling her out of its way. He looked at her for a moment before pulling her to her feet. "What were you thinking? Is there something wrong?" She looked at him like she had no idea what he was talking about, but then shook it off.

"I'm sorry," Christine said, coming to, "I'm not sure what happened there." The thing roared behind them, cueing them to continue on. They kept running.

They ran for a few minutes longer, feeling the muscles pull in their legs. They stopped to take a breath for a moment, only to notice that just ahead were the stairs leading to the school door and the girl standing in front of them. She turned to notice them and beckoned them on.

"Look," Christine said, "She wants us to come." Once the Fentons rose back up, they continued forward.

They stopped short, however, when they heard the storm siren sound off through the air, wailing like a banshee across the town. The ghostly girl seemed as if to cower in fear of some unseen presence that looked to overtake her. All of a sudden, everything went black.

"David," Christine said, "can you see anything?"

"No," David said, "Going ghost." With that, he transformed, just like his father.

"Going ghost," Christine repeated, and transformed likewise. Both of them then generated green light from their hands in order to see. What they now faced, however, was not the street but more of the rusted metal grating they had encountered whenever they first went through the hole in the house. The metallic smell of dead blood and roasted flesh filled the air.

"Oh no," Christine said, "Not more of this." Just then, from right behind them came the whispering voice, repeating the word, "Receiver," again and again. The kids turned around to see what looked like a giant ball of fur with two large sad baby doll faces at the top, held up by two large arms. One of these arms was pointing directly at David while the whispers seemed to come from nowhere. Before David could react, the creature lunged for him, grabbing him up in the extended hand.

"David!" Christine shouted as David screamed. She then flew up into the air and began firing green bolts at it, noticing more of the same creatures coming in to surround him. What she didn't notice was that her breath began to get cold as a ghost floated in from behind her, moaning as it grabbed her up. She let out one final scream as both were whisked away into the inky blackness of the Otherworld.

…………….

Danny and Danielle continued to look at the map. The light of the flashlight gleamed across the glossy page Danny held in his hand. A red circle ran around examination room two.

"It looks like we're headed to exam room two on the second floor," Danielle said.

"And the best way is the stairs," Danny followed.

"Let's go," Danielle finished. With that they headed out the door into the hallway. No sooner had they set foot on the linoleum then they heard the sirens sound across the town, making their way across the lake to the South Veil area. Everything became dark again. With Danny's flashlight, however, the pair was able to see the floor and walls seeming to rot or fall away entirely. What were left were the familiar iron, rust, and blood that covered the walls floors and ceiling.

Shaking in every limb, Danielle muttered, "Not again."

"We've got to keep moving," Danny said after a pause. The two then proceeded slowly to the left, down the hallway, passing doors that looked like they had been melted to the rest of the wall. Or were they made of flesh? It was impossible to tell.

They rounded the corner to get to the stairs. The door, however, was shut tight, not because of a broken lock, but also because it was missing a knob, covered in more of the melted fleshy material that lined the wall.

"Crap," Danielle said, frustrated as ever, still frightened and nervous, "Now what the hell do we do?"

"Look," Danny said, interrupting her fluster, "there's an elevator just down the hall. We can get to the second floor from there.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Danielle said. With that, the two turned around and stepped into the dark hallway of the group cells. "Turn off your light," Danielle whispered as they entered.

"Why," Danny said plainly.

"Just do it," Danielle said still whispering. He flicked the light off, and the two stood there in the darkness. While their eyes were adjusting, they both could hear sounds as those of some growling, unknown animal lurking in the various rooms to their right. The sound echoed in their ears, digging into their eardrums right to their brain. Still shaking, they both took a small breath and stood still, allowing their eyes to finally adjust enough for them to barely see the grimy walls of the hallway. They both then began to slowly walk down this maddening hallway until they could see some strange, large shapes standing in the middle, huddled together. Danny's breath became hot as he could slowly make out the curved bodies of these things, which appeared at first to be humanoid. He then made the mistake of turning his light on. Upon doing so, he could now see that they wore the visage of human nurses, save for that they had only lumps of flesh for faces, and were now marching towards him, holding syringes and scalpels.

"Turn it off." Danielle said, agitated. Danny proceeded as instructed, and the faceless nurses halted. From behind them, however, they both heard what sounded like women growling. They both turned around to see the door to C1 fall down and a horde of the faceless nurses fall out and begin creeping towards them.

Danielle screamed in both terror and frustration.

"I've had it," she shouted, "Going ghost." She then transformed, instantly began lodging a barrage of energy blasts at the ones blocking them from the elevator, knocking each one over with a sickening thud, and dragged Danny along as she flew to the opened elevator door. The bodies twitched and moaned, creating a harsh grating within Danny's brain. Upon entering, Danielle pressed the number two button and then proceeded to rapidly press the door close button. Right before the door could close, however, one of the flesh-faced nurses stuck a scalpel through the door and cut Danielle along the shoulder. She screeched in pain and fell to her knees to avoid any further injury, yet the door had already shut.

Danny found something on the floor elevator after turning the light back on. It was a red pocket radio, the speaker quietly making a static noise. He picked it up just as the elevator started moving.

"Why did you do that?" Danielle said.

"I'm sorry," Danny said, "It was an accident." He pocketed the radio. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Danielle said, holding her shoulder, "Just try to be more careful when I get a feeling next time, okay?" Her attention soon turned from the small cut to the coughing fit that then ensued from her throat. It was enough to nearly floor her and lasted for a full minute.

"Dani," Danny said, "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah," Danielle said, "It's just a cough."

"Good to see you're both still in shape to fight," a voice from the radio bellowed.

"Vlad," Danny said, recognizing it instantly, "Somehow I knew you'd be up to this shit again."

"Just to let you know, Danny," Vlad said, "you may have come for your kids, but I believe you'll be searching in vain when they're dead. You see, we have them now, and in a few hours, the ritual will begin."

"You hurt them," Danny growled, "and so help me, I'll pull your lungs straight out of your throat."

"Oh," Vlad asked surprised, "Does the heroic Danny Phantom have it in him to do that?" His voice cackled, echoing off the elevator walls. The radio fell silent, and the doors opened.

Danielle coughed a few more times and looked up at Danny. He was facing the floor, looking as if in anguish.

"It'll be okay, Danny," Danielle said, getting up to pat her cousin's shoulders, "We'll find them."

"Yeah," Danny said, looking up, "We've come this far. Can't stop now." With that, they both proceeded out of the elevator into the next darkened hallway. They then proceeded onward through the darkness, this time without incident, yet still the eeriness did not let up, nor did the stench of coagulated blood. As they made it to the exam room door, it looked as if something was written on it in more of the bloody graffiti. Danny turned on the light to see that it read this: "There's a lot of me inside you…Maybe you're AFRAID to see."

Danny, with some hesitance, opened the door to see a large, darkened room with one light hanging down from the ceiling. Along the blackened floors, however, scurried creatures that resembled a cross between dogs and little children. As Danny focused on these bizarre monsters, a large blade came out of nowhere and impaled one of the beasts. The blade then brought the beast into the air and flung it into one of many cages that also hung from the ceiling. What then caught both of their eyes was the figure holding the blade; this monstrosity looked humanoid, yet had what looked like a large, triangle shaped piece of metal for a head and a blood stained smock. It then continued to stab the smaller creatures and launch them into the cages.

Whenever Danny looked at this creature, he got a sudden flashing image in his head of his alternate future self, that thing that he dreaded he would one day become. Danielle got a similar flash, that of Vlad Masters, the man who spawned her and forced her to do things outside of her will.

"That thing is us," Danielle muttered.

Danny shook off the hypnotic effect of looking at the monster and noticed his goal on the floor. There was a key on the floor, shining up through the darkness.

"Going ghost," he shouted and transformed. "Dani, get the key. I'll distract him." He began firing bolts at the metal triangle of this Red Pyramid Thing. The bolts, however, had little effect on Pyramid Head, merely instigating him to swing the gigantic blade at Danny. Danny went incorporeal to avoid the blast but still knew that this was just a once in awhile thing in this town, deciding to try and simply avoid the blade from now on.

Danielle came to as well and flew towards the creature's feet, picking up the key as she went. She looked down at the tag attached to it, the word 'Stairs' reading across it.

"Hey," Danielle shouted, "I've got it. Let's go."

"Right on," Danny said, firing one last blast at the creature before the two flew out the door and ran through the next door on their right to get to the stairs. They then shut it behind them in order to perhaps stall the Red Pyramid Thing for a few moments.

"Hey," the familiar voice of the nurse, Lisa, came from their right as they turned around to face the stairs, "It's good to see you've found the key."

"Lisa," Danielle said, "What's going on?"

"Listen," Lisa said, "you have to get to the roof. I'm tired of serving the order, continually living in this Hell without the blessing of death. I've left a clue up there on how to get to the other church, the one where they're holding the kids." Just as she spoke this, a roaring sound came from behind her, and before she could react, the revving blades of a chainsaw came barreling through her chest. She screamed in agony as her blood flew across the hall. Danny and Danielle stood petrified with shock. Lisa let out one last groan before evaporating into the air, revealing the wielder of the chainsaw, a man with long, ratty blonde hair and a dark, blood stained top coat. He looked up at them with an evil face as Danny let out a breath of cold air. This man was a ghost, obviously. Either way, both Danny and Danielle knew they were almost out of power. There was no use fighting this guy or that Red Pyramid Thing behind them. They powered down, turned the key, and ran through the door, shutting it behind them.

The Fentons then ran up the stairs, hearing loud thumps behind them. They finally reached to door and frantically turned the knob to open it. The area, while dark, was bathed in a red glow from a large rune on the floor of the roof. The design looked like a large circle, and inside the circle was a large triangle with several bizarre runes floating in it. They stepped out onto the design, hypnotized by the atmosphere. Just then, the door behind them flew off its hinges. They turned to see what caused it; it was none other than the blade of Pyramid Head, who was now lumbering through the doorway. The Fentons backed away, but to no avail. Pyramid Head swung his sword yet again, this time towards the two, and just before the blade collided, the siren sounded yet again, ringing through the air and fading far into the blackness.

The Red Pyramid Thing vanished, as did nearly everything else. The world was lighter now, only filled with fog yet again and without the smell of rust and blood. The Fentons stood together, holding each other, not knowing what else to do.

"Are you okay?" Danny asked.

"Yeah," Danielle said, coughing a few more times. She then went to the center of the roof and found a map of the town. She picked it up, noticing a circle around the antique store in the old district. She continued to cough a few more times, hoarse, ragged ones that sounded as if to tear her tonsils straight out. Danny noticed her looking down into her hand for a moment.

"What are you looking at?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said, trying to hide her hand.

"Dammit, Dani," he retorted, "let me see." She then sullenly held out her hand to show what she had coughed up: green ectoplasm.


	10. The Home Front

Chapter 10 – The Home Front

There are things in this world not meant to be explained. These things dwell beyond mans reasoning and within the deepest reaches of his subconscious. The limits of man's minds were not meant to fathom the immensity of these ancient monstrosities or even the esoteric knowledge associated with them. A mere glimpse of one of these unthinkable horrors would send one's mind screaming to the back pit of their skull, there to brood in it's decay at such an unmercifully maddening sight. Such things are hinted at throughout various literary works, such as the terrible Book of Eibon, Junzt's frightful Unaussprechlichen Kulten, and the horrid Necronomicon of the mad Abdul Alhazred. Yet, even with these nightmarish descriptions, man still cannot truly glimpse the madness which lies beyond the stars and the very fabric of reality.

Despite such a rule of the universe, these things were the very thing so many women were seeing in visions and dreams throughout the world at this time. Some with pure force of will retained their sanity, such as Gaz Membrane, Juniper Lee, Tootie Turner, and Dani Fenton, while others, such as Vicky Chang, have been drained of rational thought.

Those at Arkham, however, had sent Vicky home recently, one reason because of significant progress, another being the fact that she was now pregnant. It was obvious to everyone that it happened during one of her visits home that the hospital allowed on occasion.

Micky was going to have a sister.

He didn't like it.

This, however, was not the only concern on everyone's mind.

"I can't get a hold of them," Tucker said to Mark, sitting in the Chang's living room, "Danny's phone goes straight to voicemail, and his and Sam's home phone just responds with a busy signal."

"I know Danny was going with Danielle to that supposedly haunted town," Valerie said, "But Sam needs to at least communicate with us if something happens to them."

"Surely," Mark said, "They'll turn up eventually. As long as they can eat that horrifying substance known as chocolate, they can stand up to anything."

This conversation escaped the ears of the two children in the other room. Erica and Micky were both sitting across from each other, both upset at everything that had happened.

"I can't believe they're gone," Micky said.

"Don't say that," Erica said, "They'll be okay. You know them; they're both tough."

"Yeah," Micky said, "but I just worry about…"

"What?" Erica asked.

"I kinda…liked Christine."

"What?" Erica said, "You keep making fun of her."

"I just did that," Micky said, "because I liked her. My mom and dad make fun of each other all the time. It's how they show they like each other."

"That's kinda weird," Erica said.

"It's not weird," Micky said, "It's what I know."

"Well," Erica said, "I guess since we're on the same subject…I kinda like David."

"You liked that twerp?" Micky asked with a laugh.

"He ain't no twerp," Erica said, protesting, "He was super smart. He kinda reminds me of my dad, which is kinda weird. But he was a cool kid. I can see why my dad and his got along so well."

In the other room, the conversation turned to something more positive.

"I heard your wife is pregnant," Valerie said, "Babies are so precious."

"Yeah," Mark said, "It's going to be a wretchedly wonderful little girl. We're naming her Viola."

Upstairs, Vicky lay in bed on her side, staring into the dark. She now feared the dark, the prospect of that thing behind infinite chaos dwelling within it. Nyarlathotep, with his three-lobed burning eye, could be watching her. Oh if only her twerp-in-law, Timmy, could be here to protect her with whatever magic around him, the same that he did for her sister. How could none of them see what she could?

Something was upon them; something was upon the world. Vicky had to let them all know.

…..

The girl lit a cigarette outside of the FBI headquarters. She had not smoked in a long time, but did occasionally whenever something was really bothering her. The death of her father was one of those times, but her mother helped her with the addiction to at least some degree afterwards. Now, something else was on her mind. She had to go speak with an agent by the name of Jonathan Test.

She tossed the cancer stick into the street and went inside. As she proceeded through the halls, she bumped into Agent Edgar Vargas, who was on his way home to see his wife, Tenna. The two staggered for a moment and then faced each other.

"Oh, excuse me," the girl said.

"It's alright," Edgar said, "one of those days?"

"Yeah," the girl said, "Hey, do you know where I can find Jonathan Test?"

"He's up on the third floor," Edgar said, "Is there a reason?"

"I have some information on his wife," the girl responded, "I work at the psych ward you see."

"You don't need to lie to me," Edgar said, seeing through her, "I know why you're here. You see, I know about the beyond and what's happening to Sissy."

"And you haven't told him about Silent Hill?" the girl asked.

"Silent Hill has little to do with Sissy's condition," Edgar said, "Hers is more of what's going on with the other women. But if you know something that can help him, he's on the third floor."

"Thanks," the girl said. She then walked onto the elevator, pressed the three button, and stepped out into the heart of the Federal Bureau. She knocked on the door that read "Mr. Jonathan Test" on the plaque.

"Come in," Johnny said. The girl stepped through.

"Mr. Test?" the girl asked.

"Yes," Johnny said, "can I help you? I'm kind of busy right now."

"I have some information for you," the girl said, being as direct as she always had been throughout her life, "concerning your wife and one of your friends." Johnny raised an eyebrow at him. She had honesty in her voice that being a part of the force helped him to detect.

"What do you know?" Johnny asked with a slight nervousness prevalent in his voice, "She's slowly losing herself."

"Yes, I know," the girl said with some concern, "and your friend Dani might lose herself as well if we don't act now; she's in the town of Silent Hill."

"Dani?" Johnny asked, shocked, but then his mind switched gears. "I'm sorry; I didn't catch your name."

"Heather Mason, and the sooner we act on getting to that town, the better." He had heard of that town; so many cases in the unexplained files spoke on it. He had to help this girl and Dani; it's the least he could do. And if this could lead him to understanding his wife's madness, that would be all the greater.


	11. The Emergence

Chapter 11 – The Emergence

As Sam peered out of the hole, she found herself in what looked at first like red lit factory. Her boot stepped out onto the metal grating, making a click noise as the heel struck. She stood up, ready for anything to come her way despite her head feeling like it was about to crack like a hard chocolate coding around a scoop of ice cream that was nearly melted down, and walked around the immediate corner to her right. There was a long narrow walkway which looked like it was drenched in coagulated blood. For some reason, however, this did not strike her as odd; it was as if this was something she had expected all along. Her boots clanged with each step, however, which is what gave her more of a chill, as if the sounds of the unknown were the most dangerous thing she could face, and not being able to hear them because of her feet worried her.

There was another corner she had to round, but as she did, the area seemed to get darker as steam vented from somewhere she could not place. Yet, in all of this, there was still readable graffiti along the wall. She turned her head to read it, the words "One day…" inscribed along the wall (as to what that meant, of course she knew not).

Almost immediately following this, she saw something from out of the darkness creeping towards her. It made this sickening sucking noise and looked like the combination of some small dog and a child or dwarf, yet it had a funnel on its nose and two bags on its arms. All Sam could do was react, still petrified with fear at this monstrosity. She turned on the flashlight to get a better look, only to see it charge faster. She lifted the axe and, before it could get close enough to knock her down, brought it straight down on its head (if one could call it that; it was more like a narrowing funnel). This did not kill the beast, only causing it to moan in a gruff sucking tone and twitch on the ground. She then proceeded to kick the thing until it stopped.

"What the hell was that?" she muttered to herself and the near silence of this place. All she could then do was walk down the hallway to the next red lit area, which revealed a door. She stepped through.

On the other side was a large room, the floor made a metal, and the ceiling reaching up to reveal four large rotating fans at the top. There was a staircase at the far end, which lead up to a metal platform. Sam proceeded towards the stairs, when, out of nowhere in all directions, dart spasmodically shifting and rolling wheelchairs. The strange thing was that they were unmanned. Yet, at the same time, none of this was strange to her, as if her mind had anticipated this. She ran this way and that through them, trying not to get hit. Out of nowhere, one hit her in the ankle right as she reached the stair railing, and she could hear what sounded like a hoarse laugh or moan (no one would be able to tell). This injury, however, did not stop her from proceeding up the rusty iron stairs to the next platform where, just above where she had entered, was another door with graffiti written on it. She ran closer to see what it said.

It read, "…Your eggs are going to hatch…" Just below it were two Polaroid pictures taped to the door, one of David, the other of Christine. Sam's heart sank at the sight as she pried them off with her fingernails in a controlled state, trying not to be as frantic as her nerves told her to be. Her maternal instincts kicked in even harder as she kicked down the door, revealing another dark passageway.

Since her light was still turned on, clipped to her shirt, she could see at least somewhat clearly down the hallway. It looked as if the walls were covered in rotting flesh, as were the floors, making a squishing sound as Sam ran. She at length came to another corner to round, yet the wall looked like it was made of metal rather than flesh.

All of a sudden, the metal wall seemed to slide up, and lights along the ceiling lit up, albeit still covered over by the skin of the wall. The metal wall itself, however, revealed to be what looked like a darkened nursery room, the walls covered in plastic wrap. On the right side was a crib with severed wooden rocking horses heads dancing around it; inside was a child mannequin, dancing around from the strings on the ceiling. On the right side of the room was a large adult sized mannequin without a face and, for that matter, without the features of a rounded head, reaching down from the ceiling to turn a music box that played a bizarre nursery rhyme. Despite it all, Sam was not weirded out in the least, despite knowing she should be, yet her brain saying otherwise.

The song played something to this effect:

"Marzy doats

And dozy doats

And liddle lamzy divey,

A kiddley divey, too,

They'll eat you, Sam.

They're coming to kill you."

Sam heard a small clanking noise from behind her. She spun around, drawing her revolver and holding her axe in the other hand, and saw a man-sized monster, with a lump of flesh for a head and knives on both of its arms. Without thinking any further on the creature, she fired two shots into it, causing it to stagger. It then made a lunge for her, and just before she could pull the trigger again, it knocked her down. She struggled with the blade, the thing trying to press it to her face. Finally she pushed it off by kicking it from her, rolling out of its way, and firing three more shots into it, knocking it to the ground. It did not get up. The only thing left was the dull, scratchy tune of the music box.

Shaking in every ligament, Sam proceeded around the corner. The hallway grew darker as she proceeded, the melody fading with the light. She eventually made it to a door with more graffiti on it, along with two more photos.

It read, "…And very strange birds are going to emerge."

As Sam picked up the photos, something inside her brain destroyed the very memory of what she had seen. She looked into them and knew no more. The…things in the photos were indescribable. No human language can describe the horrors that dwelt within those photographs. She stood trembling and reeling in the middle of the hall as she gazed into the images, yet the last shred of sanity she had left seemed to be blocking her from fully grasping the immense, maddening sights of those ancient, cyclopean monstrosities. Dropping the photos, she shook her head around and kicked open this door.

Walking through it, the door immediately shut behind her. Startled, yes, but she then looked around her and saw that she was now on the sidewalk along the street of a dark, foggy town. There was no daylight; night had now crept in. Yet, the fog blanketed the street lights. She knew then where she was: Silent Hill.

Sam heard a sound to her left and saw what looked like the visage of a teenage girl in a blue dress (that was about all the light would reveal). She was kneeling down on the street, writing something on a large piece of paper.

"You there," Sam called out. But the girl ran off and disappeared into the fog. Sam then walked over to the piece of paper and saw that it was indeed a map. This girl had been marking some very large red circles on it. Sam picked it up and saw that the circle was around the antique store in the old district, an arrow pointing to it along with the words, "The OTHER church."


	12. Gathering of the Players

Chapter 12 – Gathering of the Players

The elevator door creaked open, revealing the darkened hallway of the lower level. Danny and Dani stepped out into the darkness, knowing that nothing was left to be worried about from this hospital; it was the things outside that were their major concern besides heading to the map location. There was a sense of melancholy that lingered in the air so heavy that it seemed to choke the arteries around their hearts. Their benefactor was shredded right in front of them.

"She's not dead, you know," Dani said, "Not totally anyway. She's still going through Hell, though, quite literally."

"Yeah," Danny said, "That doesn't mean it's any less painful to know."

"Agreed," Dani said after a pause, a sense of disturbance in her voice.

The two continued to the front door from which they had previously entered the structure. Danny turned the knob and opened the door, causing the hinges to create a harsh grating sound that rattled both of their skeletons. What greeted them on the other side, however, was something they had not anticipated: the night. Darkness, not of the sirens but of the time, had spread itself across the town.

"Ah, damn it," Dani said, "How the hell are we going to cross the town now?"

"Hey, we'll make it," Danny said, forcing a slight smile, "Just have faith, okay?"

"Who knows what could be in the dark now?" Dani asked rhetorically, talking with her hands near to her face. Almost immediately upon finishing that sentence, she began coughing again. Putting her hand to her mouth, she reeled with each vibration of her throat.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright?" Danny asked; he was not sure what he could possibly do to help her, but felt it nice to ask.

"Sure I'm sure," Dani said, her coughs lessening, "I only say what I mean; you know that."

"Alright," Danny said, taking a step out the door, suggesting her to follow, "I trust you; just take care of yourself."

Dani knew very well why she coughed; her worst fear that had lingered in her head for so long was now reality.

The two stepped out into the blackness, fog still lingering through the air. Streetlights appeared here and there along the road, yet still did not shine bright enough to completely pierce the fog. The air felt thin, yet moist. Since the lake was nearby, that might have explained the latter case. But for the heaviness in the atmosphere, there could be no explanation.

The two continued down the street into the unknown. They walked for what felt like hours until, finally, they arrived at the edge of Nathan Avenue. They knew that, just north of here, was Toluca Lake.

"Think we could fly it?" Danny asked.

"I'm not using my powers again," Dani said, "I know the coughing's just going to get worse."

"Then I can carry you," Danny said, "I just figured a straight line's always shortest."

"Okay," Dani said, reassured, "Just so you understand. I just hope the town doesn't turn us in the wrong direction like it has so many times since we've been here." Danny transformed and, picking his cousin up in his arms, began to fly over the trees and through the fog, eventually overlooking the lake. Conveniently enough, there was a light shining brightly at the other end. As to whether or not that light was of a friendly nature or a burning fire of The Order, it remained to be seen. Danny flew high over the waters where so many had previously drowned from the boat wreckage for which the lake was famous.

……..

Johnny and Heather continued down the road towards the town in the rental car they took from the airport. For this time of the season, there was no rain. There was, however, enough moisture in the area to create condensation on the windshield, of which Johnny got rid of by switching on the defrost.

"You said you've been to this town before?" Johnny asked.

"Yeah," Heather said, "Technically, I was born there. It's complicated. But then the people who killed my dad kind of forced me to come back."

"I remember that case," Johnny said, "Some of the residue they found in forensics couldn't match up to anything they had seen before." He paused. "I'm sorry; I don't mean to be insensitive. I kind of was in my younger days; I guess there's still a part of me that can be."

"Don't worry," Heather said, a joking tone in her voice, "Most men have trouble growing out of it. Besides, I've come to accept it; it's what he would have wanted. My mom took care of me after that; with as much as she loved him, it goes needless to say she was pretty broken up about it, too. You've heard of her, right? Officer Cybil Bennett?"

"Yeah," Johnny said, "She's the one who busted my brother in law whenever he was younger for stealing some top secret project from the Brahms Research Facility. Back then, he was known as Bling Bling Boy. He's really cleaned up since then, not to mention lost a lot of that pudginess in his gut."

"Isn't your other brother in law Gil, the surfer guy?"

"Yeah," Johnny said, "of course, my sisters didn't experiment on either of them like they did me. I think I still have some radiation in me despite all the years."

All of the sudden, the front left tire of the vehicle exploded with a bang that resembled a twenty one gun salute at a funeral. The car stopped with an abrupt halt that made both of them rattle in their seats.

"Shit," Johnny said, rushing out of the car to witness that the tire had not only become flat, but had also ripped in half and come off of the wheel entirely, "How could this possibly have happened? I made sure to get one with new tires that were properly aired up. And I know how those places operate, too; this couldn't have escaped their strict policy."

"Hey, stuff happens," Heather said, "Maybe we could call a four one one for the nearest gas station."

"Yeah," Johnny said, "but God only knows how long that could take just to get someone out here to work on it. If only Dukie were here; he'd get us out of this, no problem."

From behind them, off in the distance, down the long road through the woods, two very large headlights came near them. As they got closer, Johnny and Heather could see that it was a large Mack truck. It pulled up next to them, and the driver, who was wearing a blue cap and orange vest, leaned over and rolled down the window.

"You two got a flat?" He yelled out.

"Yeah," Johnny said, feeling like this guy should have seen it right off the bat. The truck driver jumped out of his vehicle and walked towards them.

"Well, I could help with that," he said, "See, I'm actually delivering some tires right now. I'll just make up a story on why one is missing. I don't have to even claim any responsibility for it; I'll just tell them I only got what they gave me. The name's Travis."

"Well, we appreciate the offer, Travis," Heather said, "but we can't take from you. We'll just get one from the next gas station over." Travis looked at Heather with a sense of shock and an overwhelming sense of recognition. She looked almost exactly like her, the girl he had seen in Silent Hill. She looked back at him with the vague notion that she had met him once before. Travis then turned his speech back to Johnny without trying to seem rude.

"I really have no problem doing this for you," He continued, "Plus, there's no gas station that can really help near here. The closest one is actually in the Toluca Lake town."

"Thanks," Johnny said, "We appreciate it." The trucker set to work on jacking up their car and replacing the tire after learning what type it needed. Upon replacing it, with some help from both Heather and Johnny, he continued his conversation.

"So what brings you out here tonight?" Travis asked.

"We're going to Silent Hill," Johnny said without thinking.

"Why?" Travis asked, standing to his feet with a look of shock on his face, "What business could you possibly want from that place?"

"Two of our friends are there," Heather said, "We need to help them. I've been to that town; I know what's in it."

"So do I," Travis said, "and just from that, I'm worried about them to. Listen, I'm not about to tell you what to do, but if you're going into that town, I suggest you go in armed and prepared for the worst."

"Don't worry, man," Johnny said, "We plan to."

"Well, I better get going," Travis said, "Best of luck to you both. You'll be in my thoughts." They waved their goodbyes to this "Good Samaritan", got in their car, and continued down the road towards Toluca Lake and then on to Silent Hill.

……..

How long had he been flying? It felt like days, years even, years of endless night and fog. And still the light in front of them had only grown a little closer. How long could his power last?

"The town's doing this," Dani said, "I just know it."

"Yeah," Danny said, "I don't know how much longer I can hold out." Dani removed the map from her skirt pocket and unfolded it. They had to be going in the right direction since they were headed north east. Something, however, caught her eye towards the top of the map. It was a small red circle with a line pointing to it with the words Johnny and Heather next to it.

The strange thing was that the circle was moving; it seemed to be sliding downwards into the Old District where Danny and Danielle had previously been.

"Danny," Dani said, "I think we have company." She looked again and saw that within the Old District was another smaller circle with the word Sam next to it. "And I think one of them is your wife."

……..

The young man flew through the Ghost Zone in his ship, searching for the correct door. He had several indicators that through this door, he would be able to find the Flauros for which he had desired for a number of years since his induction as an anthropologist. The anthropologist title, however, was indeed just a cover for him to search out rare artifacts of dead civilizations; how he had previously performed his tasks in the past had only brought trouble. Now, he could do it subtly and without the hassle of dealing with Danny Phantom.

This young man's name was Youngblood. He still commanded his ship and still had an immature streak to him, yet new he had the wisdom of how to be a true rogue.

As the ship passed through the blackness of empty space, Youngblood could see that near the port side was the very door he was searching for, a red door with the three circled seal of The Order of Xuchilbara etched upon it. He walked over to the plank once his crew had anchored the ship and stepped near the door.

He reached out his hand, yet hesitated for a moment, for he had been searching for this door for so long that grasping such a thing was something to be cherished. Yet, he finally extended his hand, turned the knob, opened the door, waved goodbye to his crew, and stepped in, shutting it behind him. He then found himself in what looked like a large spiraling staircase which went around in a wide circle, stone walls surrounding the outer edge. He then proceeded down the metal stairs, his new metal foot (which had replaced his peg leg) clanging against the rust. Now and then, he would pass by caged rooms, each containing some grisly scene with humanoid puppets or what looked like the newly dead having been butchered. Even with his fearless nature, such sights as these made him cringe.

Eventually he reached the bottom, only to find that the stairs ended with another door with the same seal upon it. There was no going back now. He opened the door and stepped through.


	13. The Cough Creeps In

Chapter 12 – Gathering of the Players

Chapter 13 – The Cough Creeps Back In

Youngblood proceeded through the door, unknowing of that which lay beyond. Immediately, what greeted his senses was the putrid smell of decayed fungus and rotting flesh, along with the sound of some strange, rusty crank being turned, coming from some lower level at a distant echo. What he saw in front of him was what looked like a collection of pictures, in a cross design, of portions of a woman's face; two were of a pair of really wide eyes, while the rest were of the same mouth in different stages, these being a frown, a laugh, a grin, and several others. He turned his head in wonder at such strangeness, but then noticed in disgust that the rest of the walls were covered in the very thing he smelled. He turned to his right and saw that there was a set of iron stairs, the walls covered in the same substance, leading down to the source of the sound.

Thus, he proceeded downward, not seeing any further option than to continue forward; the Flauros was just out of his reach, and the fear of the unknown was not about to hold him further from it. His boots made a clanking noise on each step as his legs moved in concordance with each turn of the deranged crank. As the sickening stairway progressed downward, the light from behind the fleshy ceiling began to fade. Youngblood could not see his hand in front of his face. Eventually, however, as he moved on, there came a low, red light, glowing beneath the iron grating, revealing that the staircase was now none other than a narrow walkway that stood high above an indistinguishably deep, carrion, black pit. He stepped out upon it and walked several steps through the darkness before finally seeing some small, distant thing deep within the cavernous hole.

The thing looked like it fashioned the form of a man, turning what looked like the very crank that had made those haunting echoes up the stair, only it looked as if his twitching head was covered in a tight sack of rotted flesh and crusted blood. Despite how far down this man was, the crank in his hand continued to make the droning din that shot a sense of agitation through every nerve of Youngblood's spectral body.

Ere long, Youngblood's eyes began to adjust further, allowing him to see through the blackness. Beyond the distant man lay something he could still but barely see. He could also hear a faint sound that resembled some low whine of a flute echoing in the distance along with the crank. Yet, the sound increased its volume, almost drowning out the crank. Eventually, the red light began to illuminate further, giving his eyesight leave to see that which lay in the blackness.

What Youngblood saw after that was something that he could not and refused to remember. He saw the immensity of the blasphemous unknown, the embodiment of chaos itself, laying before him, howling into its nightmarish flute, the great daemon sultan Azathoth. His brain seemed to leap out and begin yammering at him to run, but his muscles did not want to listen at first. They only moved whenever the other, smaller creatures flew at him from the catwalk. These things were something that resembled a combination of insects, bats, scorpions, and rotting corpses. His mind did not communicate to defend himself, but told him to run, which he could finally do.

His boots clanged against the thin, metallic catwalk as he proceeded onward away from this scene of horror and the creatures flying and clawing after him. Up ahead, he saw another door with The Order's symbol on it. It was his only chance. He grabbed the handle, the things only two feet behind him. He turned the knob and ran through, shutting it behind him and hearing the creatures howl and wail against it. At least now he was safe, escaping one form of death, only to find himself facing yet another form of horror, the town itself.

He now faced a dark, foggy street in front of what looked like an old theater. On a nearby telephone post, something caught his eye; it was a piece of paper with a note on it written in red.

It said, "There's something broken on the inside of your love. Go fix her."

He pulled the note off and saw that the larger piece of paper was a map with circles around certain areas, one being south of him, showing the location of the "Other Church" and the others showing the names of Danny, Danielle, Sam, Heather, and Johnny, those with names seeming as if to move. He then remembered the name Danielle, that of the girl he saw in the Antarctic. He remembered how pretty she was and her playful personality. They had only spoken briefly, but she had never left his mind. Her name was what escaped him.

If she was hurt, he wanted to help, more than he would anyone else in this world. She may have been the only other person he would ever have cared about in the world. There was something more to be gained here than just the Flauros, and that was her safety.

…….

As Danny flew with Danielle in his arms, it felt as if a pain had struck him from all over. They were getting closer to the old district, and the closer he got, the more pain he felt.

"We've got to land," Danny said with a grunt of pain.

"Why?" Danielle asked, "What's wrong?"

"This pain," he said, "I can't fly." They had to anywhere they could, and it ended up that they landed near a butcher shop. Danny powered down and fell to his knees.

"Are you going to be alright?" Danielle asked, leaning over him.

"Yeah," Danny said, getting up, "My powers are just limited in this area." They looked down at the map again and reminded themselves where the church was. Danny looked up and down the street, seeing some large nearby cracks in the streets. "Okay, it looks like we're going to have to leave through the butcher shop in order to get anywhere."

Danielle looked at the place and shuttered at the thought of going through such a frightening place. She then glanced down at the map again and noticed something new. She saw a new circle north of the area, the word Youngblood next to it. Her heart skipped a beat for a moment, both in nervous shyness and of joy. If it meant she could see this boy again, she would brave any scary place.

"Alright," Danielle said, with an uncharacteristic bravery, "Lets go."

"Alright? You sound almost excited."

"Trust me," she responded, "we can do it. We made it passed that triangle headed thing, didn't we?" With that, she proceeded onward to the front door.

Right as she reached the door, however, her lungs seemed to fire up again, causing her to cough. She then held her hand to her mouth, giving her palm another ectoplasm bath. She looked again, and the fear crept back.


	14. She Found Her Vent

Chapter 14 – She Found Her Vent

Chapter 14 – She Found Her Vent

"I struggled no more, but the agony of my soul found vent in one loud, long, and final scream of despair." – Edgar Allen Poe, "The Pit and the Pendulum"

Sam busted the glass of the hardware store door she could not make the name out of and stepped in through the glass, avoiding the rail one would normally push to go through. The map showed that this was the only way to reach her destination, and she did not want to waist any more time. Her head still hurt with the pulsation of a thousand thunders, a tempest of storm and strife raging through her brain.

The creaking sound of some distant door scraped her skull, although she could not place where.

There were distant echoes from the other end of the store, these being a combination of whispers and children playing. She listened closer, and the voices sounded like her children when they were younger.

"Mommy's coming, kids," Sam whispered to the thin, empty air. In her mind, she could hear distant screams and moans. Visions came to her head, but not like the ones her new psychic talents generally would produce, but rather frightening ones, threatening ones, of the floating bodies of the victims of Walter Sullivan, although she could not quite place at first where she knew that name. She began to stagger through the debris scattered throughout the aisles of the store, holding her head, the sounds not relenting. She stumbled in between a two way stop and saw something on the wall that just seemed to stand out to her.

In red, bloody graffiti were the words, "USE ME!" Below them was a chainsaw. She walked over and picked it up, sensing something calling her to it and also thinking that maybe she could use it against those…things, as disgusting as the thought was. Whenever she picked it up, there was a funny smell, that of something not quite dead but not quite alive.

Nothing made sense right now, not in her mind at least.

She saw at the end of the aisle the front door. Behind the grime smeared glass stood the same girl in the blue dress she had seen earlier, her finger pointing out to the street. Sam proceeded forward, her head still screeching with pain.

"Bastards," she said to the air and the nothing, "I'll kill them all for taking my children." The light outside was returning, as an orange glow could be seen around the fog that now lined the streets. It did not matter, as Sam had no real intention of letting anything hiding in it stop her now.

She was, however, not exactly feeling her best, nor was she really herself right now.

……..

Johnny and Heather stopped the car near one of the streets and got out. They walked to the back of the car and opened the trunk. The metal hinges gave a slight thud, a slight break only in the sound of the wind. Inside were two shotguns Johnny had taken from the FBI headquarters. They removed them and began loading them from the large box of slug rounds that were also lying with them.

"So how bad are the things around here?" Johnny asked.

"Bad," Heather answered, "The last time I was here was back in 2016. Who knows how strong the forces within this town have gotten?"

"You know how to use one of these?" Johnny asked her. Heather responded with a look of aggravation.

"Yes, I know how to use these," she answered blandly, as the two proceeded to walk, "My dad taught me how when I was younger, thinking I might need to know one day if things turned sour, and it seems they did those six years ago." The two wandered up the street, past one of the bars that seemed too foggy to see into. Off in the distance, they thought they could see something moving and hear the echoing noises of some strange animal.

"Damn," Johnny said, "And I thought Eugene and Susan's new house was frightening." They moved down the street, the fog wrapping itself around them like some uncomfortable blanket. An orange light shown through the sky, giving something of a half morning, yet having an odd, ethereal glow from worlds beyond. They made their way to one of the lampposts, and Heather could see something taped to it, a piece of paper with red letters on it.

"This is to my future self," the red letters said. Heather looked at the paper and saw that it was a map, like the many others those who were also in the town had received, and likewise shown the circled location of each person and the accursed church.

"Alessa wants us to go there," Heather said, pointing to the circle.

"You sure?" Johnny asked, "This is still not making sense to me. How does this relate to Sissy's condition?"

"Whatever's causing this epidemic," Heather began, "that's causing so many women to find their place in Arkham Asylum, it has a node here, and if we can strike at it from here, maybe it'll loosen its grip on the world just a tad more."

"What do you think it is?" Johnny asked.

"They are the very things we really don't want our world to consist of," she answered in a low tone, "The unnamed and unnamable, as some of my professors have called them. Either way, I had an encounter with one of them so many years ago. The bitch nearly killed me, just as that freak Claudia killed my dad. Took care of it with plenty of scratches on me, but I guess since it was part of me, it must've held back."

"So that's what Sissy was talking about," Johnny said with some realization, "These things she kept babbling about are actually real."

"How could so many other women babbling about the same thing be wrong?"

"Hey, some fashion trends are just that, wrong, but everyone buys them," Johnny answered, sounding like a complete idiot to Heather. She just shook her head.

There was some rumbling they could hear from the café they passed, having equally foggy windows. They paused for a moment, attempting to see if they could view anything that had made the sound. There seemed to be some sort of motion coming from behind the glass, but neither could make it out, that is, until the glass flew at them in small shards, making a loud crash and causing them to duck. When they stood after a moment, they both looked through the broken hole, but neither could see just what had caused it.

Then came the cause for the alarming shatter. It lept out from the hole and took almost some figure of man. Yet its head consisted of some strange twitching cylinder, its arms were long and terminated into two round balls, its legs, of which it then began to stand on, were the thinnest thing on its body, and its form stood eight feet tall. Two more like it began to emerge.

"What the hell are those things?" Johnny said, stunned with a mild fear.

"I've never been able to figure out," Heather said, cocking the shotgun, "but they go down pretty easy with a few slugs." With that they both began firing at the first one. And still, after several rounds, the thing began proceeding towards them, almost completely not affected.

"My thoughts were right," Heather said, "They are on crack now from so many years. Run!" The two ran down the street, narrowly avoiding the swing of the creature's arms towards them. They passed a hardware store that looked as if the door had been completely obliterated but paid it little mind. They had to get away from these things first.

Out of nowhere, from the sky, came the two mannequin tops with blades on their heads and sides, screeching through the air.

"Shit!" Johnny yelled, "What deranged mind could have dreamt these things up?" He put his shotgun on the ground for a moment. "But I at least know how to get rid of this one." He held his arms to his sides for a moment, allowing the screeching things to get in range, and allowed his hands to form fists. He then shot his hands into the air, creating a huge gust of wind that made Heather stagger back a bit and shield her face. The blast then hit the two creatures and sent them sailing back to wherever they came from. Johnny fell to the ground for a moment, having exerted energy.

Heather walked over to him, amazed.

"How did you do that?" She asked.

"A nice little gift my sisters gave me," he answered, "You should see what my other cannon can do." Heather backed away, not really thinking she wanted to see.

The two did not, however, realize that this was not the end, as one of the tall, bag armed creatures had followed them down the street. It towered above them and, as they were turning around to face it, began to raise one of its arms with the intent of swinging it at them.

Just then, from out of one of the alleyways, came the sound of a revving chainsaw and Sam wielding it.

"Bastards!" she screamed as she ran towards the thing. With that, she leaped into the air and, in the same motion, rammed the blade directly into the monster's back, flooring it. With rage in her eyes, she began continually jamming the chainsaw again and again into the thing's back. Catching her breath, she finally stopped, the chainsaw's volume lowering.

"Sam?" Johnny asked, "Is that you? Are you looking for Dani, too?" She looked up at him and then over at his companion, Heather. What she saw was not Heather, but her visage, all covered in blood, dark hair, and blackness where her eyes should have been.

"She's the one who shall bring the curse upon us," Sam muttered, "SHE MUST DIE!" With that, Sam charged at Heather with her axe.

"Your friend has gone ape-shit!" Heather shouted, staggering a little bit as if to break into a run.

"I hate to do this, Sam," Johnny said, stepping in front, "but this'll hurt me too." With that, he butted Sam in the face in mid run with the shotgun, knocking her to the ground, out cold. He looked down at her. "Sam," he said, "What happened to you?"

……..

Danny and Danielle made their way down the corridor of the small butcher shop, walking slowly, unsure of what lay ahead. There was blood smeared here and there on the walls, and what looked like old food lay in a glass display in front of them. They rounded the corner and walked to the back door, only to see a big iron chain with an enormous lock on it.

"Dammit," Danny said, "What are we going to do now?"

"Then we have no choice," Danielle said, turning around with some anxiety, "We have to face him after all."

"Who?"

"The Butcher," she answered, having a strange sureness in her voice, but one of reluctance as well, "He holds the key." She was so tired and irritated by the visions she got of this town, it was starting to make her head spin. How much more did she have to endure? Would all of this pain go on forever? On top of that, would the guy she secretly cared for be the same as he had been so long ago? She felt like she was fourteen again, but where were these feelings come from? She had grown into an independent woman, albeit a lonely one cursed with nightmare visions. But how much more did she have to endure alone? Would these nightmares never end without a hand to hold?

The walked back to a pair of iron doors they had passed earlier, thinking they could avoid what lay behind them without worry. Unfortunately, at the word of Danielle, they had to enter.

The door creaked open, the rusted iron hinges making a harsh grating sound as they moved together, the kind of sound that would cause the fibers along the spine to stand up and begin crying out in their own terror. Inside was nearly pitched black. Staring into that darkness, the two of them beheld the very terror and dreams no mortal could bare to dream, yet this was the fear that was as old as mankind, the fear of what unknown forces would lay behind that thick black curtain of darkness. The two proceeded in.

Just then, the door shut behind them, which, after all they had been through, barely surprised them. At the far end, they could hear a sound, as that of some knife cutting into meat.

Danny turned the flashlight on; the immediate thing that both of them saw gave a wave of nausea to their abdomens, in the form of the faceless nurses, hanging from the ceiling by meat hooks. He shined the light towards the direction of the sound and saw what looked like movement between two hanging bodies. Squinting, they could both make out the image of something that looked humanoid, almost having a similar shape to Pyramid Head yet with a slight left angle. It was using an equally big knife to cut into one of the hanging nurses.

Just then, it turned very quick to face them and began charging, knife in hand.

"Shit!" Danielle yelled, "Going ghost!" With that she flew head on at the thing.

"Wait," Danny said, concerned both on the level that she had no idea how powerful this thing was and that she was using her powers when she should not have been.

As Danielle flew, her emotions and her mind were imbalanced. Everything seemed to be collapsing in upon itself as she gazed at her attacker. She was just tired and disgusted at her power, her clairvoyance, her loneliness, and at these horrid creatures. These things were partially responsible for what was going on in the world (the other part being that of the Great Old Ones obviously), and she felt it completely unfair that she would have to suffer the same curse as so many other women to watch this world go to Hell in a hand basket. She was fed up of being alone, of being used, and of being sick with whatever was destabilizing in her lungs.

The beast swung at her with a much swifter attack than Pyramid Head, but Danielle was quicker to respond. She ducked under his arm and held it up with two hands. Her eyes glowed green with a sense of anger one would not expect from such an innocent, beautiful face as hers. She then fired a large ray of green energy that illuminated the room, disintegrating its arm and causing the knife to fall to the ground.

The Butcher staggered a bit from the blast and from the obvious pain from having lost an appendage. This gave Danielle the opportunity to pick up the fallen cleaver with two hands and, in one violent motion, bury it deep into the Butcher's chest, causing him to finally fall. With a loud grunt, she flew into the air and, after building up a high concentration of energy, unleashed yet another ray of plasma down onto the Butcher's head, vaporizing it. She fell to her knees near the body, powered down, and began to weep.

Danny began to approach her, wanting to comfort her. Danielle's mind was elsewhere. Her body gave out, giving up the struggled.

As Danny took one more step forward, he then heard a sound that set every nerve in his body on end, worse than this town ever could, in the guise of Danielle screaming a final melancholic cry into the air.

Shaking in every limb, Danny forced himself to take a few more steps towards Danielle.

"I'm sorry, Dani," Danny said, placing his hand upon her shoulder, as if he knew instinctively what she was feeling and thinking. As he touched her, she began yet another coughing fit. Holding her chest, it subsided after two minutes, although it seemed like an eternity. Danny helped her to her feet, and after a minute of him holding her in his arms she finally responded in saying that she was fine.

The key was on the Butcher's belt. Danielle reached down and picked it up.

"Let's get going," she said plainly. The two walked back through the now open door, down the hallway, and opened the lock.

Upon stepping out into the foggy air, an orange glow could be seen all around. They then stepped freely out into the streets and checked the map again, seeing that they still had to head north.

Just then, a large creature that looked like a giant humanoid contortionist, legs bended over the back of its head, using them and its chest for walking purposes, towering twenty feet above them, leaped into view.

"What now?" Danielle asked in terror, "What the hell is that? How much more?"

Just then, a familiar voice could be heard, taunting it to look across the street. It was none other than Youngblood, his artificial hand now converted temporarily into a homing missile launcher, stood on the opposite street corner, aiming his weapon at the monster. He then fired a series of shrieking missiles at the beast eventually toppling it into a bloody mass in the road.

"Arrr!" Youngblood roared as the beast fell. He then began walking slowly over to Danielle, "Thought you all could use some help." Danny was surprised to see him.

"Youngblood," Danny said, "So you too eventually grew up and grew old." Danielle was not paying attention to Danny's words. She began to walk slowly up to Youngblood and, staring into his smiling, cocky face for a moment, threw her arms around his neck, nearly knocking him down.

"Thank you for your help," she murmured, followed by a relieved sigh and a series of coughs.

"Don't mention it," Youngblood said with some surprise, but not really minding, as he had not been this close to a girl in a long time, let alone a "hot" one like Danielle, "Now, will someone fill me in on why everyone's here and what the hell these things are?"


	15. A Glimpse of Hell on Earth

Chapter 15 – A Glimpse of Hell on Earth

Chapter 15 – A Glimpse of Hell on Earth

Valerie drove up to the small house around the San Jose suburbs. It was in one of the less crowded areas of the city, away from the noise but not the heat. There was an air of the natural world around it, oak trees towering high over each house. The sun streamed down through the trees, creating a kaleidoscopic effect along the wild grass, giving a dreamlike, ethereal effect to the area.

It had been a few days since the disappearance of the Fentons, and everyone was beginning to worry.

Although it must be said that it was only a few hours in the other world.

Valerie walked up to the door of the house and saw that the door was already opened. She was about to knock when she heard a woman's voice echo across the hall now reaching towards the front door, creeping through the front door, and into Valerie's ear, saying, "Come in."

She stepped into the door. The whole house seemed empty, but what a house! It looked small from the outside, but inside, the décor and architecture resembled that of a New England estate. The furnishings carried with them something of the obscure, a haunting painting here, a strange voodoo doll there, and in the living room, a large 2080p television with a GS6 attached to it…although the house was empty.

What was even more interesting was the area Valerie could not see which lay underneath the house in the form of an alien base.

"Come up stairs," the voice told her. She then proceeded up the long staircase and into the immediate bedroom, where in a bed the infamous Gaz Membrane lay. Her eyes were closed, her hands were folded, and her body was stiff as a board. There was a woman in her fifties sitting in a chair next to her, although she didn't look that old at all; having done her red hair in pigtails made her look younger.

"She was expecting you," the woman said, "as was I. I'm assuming you came for answers, just like I did?"

"I want to know where my friends are," Valerie said, "and if there's anything I can do. Ms. Membrane knows them, and I have experience in fighting the paranormal, so I'd like to know where they are."

Gaz's mind was drifting through space. She could see vast alien worlds that danced chaotically to some inevitable oblivion. She saw worlds that lay like blisters in the universe, dead from the touch of those blasphemous monstrosities that dwell beyond the realms that man can see.

"She's helping me understand my husband's dreams," the woman said, "He's had them for several years, ever since Jimmy, or 'Mmy' as the stupid bastard liked to be called, did what he did, but they've been getting worse."

"Mine haven't been so great either," Valerie said, "but I'm less concerned about that and more about my friends."

"Yeah," the woman said, "As I am about my husband. He's been well for so long, I would hate to see him turn back into what he was, the monster he didn't want to be."

"I see it," Gaz muttered, "I see it all."

Gaz could see further downward into the cosmos. She then came across a world of fog and shadow, of decimated ruins that were once cities, and strange, amorphous tentacles creeping down through the sky to claim what was theirs. The inhabitance of this world resembled humans at one time, but now seemed to take on obscure qualities, as did their minds in relation to the world. One figure stood out to her with green skin and wide eyes. He spoke in a soft voice and only cared for rusty spoons and the figures his mind would dream up. Another was a lost man, both in reality and in his mind, who was being followed by the spirit of some mutant child. Yet, despite the dwindling life this world carried, nothing could survive for long in the desolate chaos of a world claimed by the old ones.

And in the previous time, there were three nodes that resided across this world where the destruction originated: one was in Arabia, in the tomb of Abdul Alhazred, another was in the town of Innsmouth, Massachusetts, while another was in the small abandoned town of Silent Hill. That was where the Fentons were, their lives not yet snuffed out.

"Your friends are alive," Gaz said in a soft pant, eyes still closed.

"Yes," Valerie said with intent, "Where are they?"

"They're in Silent Hill," Gaz said, "Battling the devils of the other world."

"So," Devi said, "this is all real. Everything my husband has said is coming."

"Yes," Gaz said, opening her eyes, "All of this is coming to pass. Danny has to find his own way out of hell and hopefully end the Great Old Ones reign over the town. But soon, the other nodes shall activate. And when the time comes, we, the non idiots who can actually see something beyond our own asses and into the greater worlds, need to be ready. Because when they awaken, the shit's going to hit the fan…hard."

The three stared in silence, wondering what to do next and where to begin.


	16. The Gates of Damnation

Chapter 16 – The Gates of Damnation

Danny walked ahead of the group. He thought it best to scout ahead with what little power he had but also to give Dani and Youngblood some time together. They had been walking for the past half hour, but still no monsters. They began to wonder what could be going on. Could there be something they could have done to cause this? Was the curse of the town fading? Or could they be preparing something?

Dani and Youngblood were still talking and laughing, despite the deteriorating situation. One couldn't gaze into the abyss for long. Youngblood had already gazed into it and retained his mind. Dani just needed to be pulled out of it.

"So that's the life of retail?" Youngblood asked, "You have a collection of ignorant fools whose only response to any return of the parts you traded were, 'DOG chewed it up?'"

"Yeah," Dani said, "And then you get those people, who smell like feet, that will spend forever looking at the receipt because they think you cheated them on a muffler."

"Dear Lord," Youngblood said, "How did you put up with it for so long?"

"Meh," Dani sighed, "I feel like I can endure a lot."

"I would imagine a lot of loneliness, too," Youngblood said, "Why did you stop calling me? I didn't know how to take it, babe."

"Well, I…" Dani began, hesitating.

"Hey, remember that time we poured all that water on Skulker and Ember's heads?" Youngblood asked.

"Oh, yeah," Dani said, remembering the brief days they actually were together.

"Or that time we put flaming dog-shit on Specra and Ghostwriter's front porch?"

"Yeah…yeah, I do remember," Dani muttered, half smiling, "Then we snuck into their basement to steal all the coal out of their furnace? Cold winter for them, wasn't it?"

They HAD to have talked to each other after the planetary attack, hadn't they? Where were these memories coming from?

"If I remember right," he continued, smiling, "you gave me a kiss as I flew you home."

She had. She HAD. Why didn't she remember?

"Which makes me also wonder," he mused, "why were you so scared to fly?" But she couldn't answer. She remained silent, staring at the murky asphalt. Her own mind wasn't even ready to face it. Yet, she felt every fiber in her being, even after these long years, to reach out and take his hand, although artificial. No, she wouldn't; it was too early.

Danny began to see something in the distance. Was it one of them? They had humanoid figures. It looked like they were hanging on each other. Soon, he began to make out who it was.

"Hey," Danny said, desiring a friendly greeting in order to ease his mind that this image before him was not conjured of his imagination. The three in front paused for a moment, looking up and recognizing Danny.

"Danny?" Sam mumbled, head hanging down as Johnny and Heather held her body up. Her body looked like a dangling garment on a clothesline.

"Danny, is that you?" Johnny asked, "How the hell are you?"

"Well, apart from nearly losing my mind as well as my kids," Danny said sarcastically, "I'm doing peachy. And how did Sam get here? What happened to her?"

"She just went berserk and attacked Heather here," Johnny responded, "We had to sedate her." They were still struggling to carry Sam's body in an organized manner, although she did not weigh very much at all. Indeed, she was a sorry sight to behold. Her body looked emaciated, and her skin was more pale than usual.

"Johnny," Dani addressed him, smiling, "What are you doing here?"

"Well," Johnny began, "Heather here convinced me to drive down here to figure out what was wrong with Sissy. Once we got here, all these monsters popped out of nowhere and attacked us, along with Sam."

"Are you and Sissy finally together?" Dani asked, "I had a feeling it was going to happen eventually."

"She was just as crazy as you are," Youngblood said, addressing Johnny.

"We can spare the reunion moments for later," Heather said, "Right now, we need to put a stop to whatever Dahlia's planning."

"Right," Danny said, "and kick their asses for kidnapping the kids. So help me God if they hurt them…"

"David…Christine…" Sam mumbled.

But the group did not address her. They merely walked on in silence towards the antique store, knowing that beyond its walls lay the blasphemous unknown.

Danny's mind was a web of concern and confusion. What could they be doing to them right now? What could they need them for? He was absolutely tired of having to deal in and out with Vlad. He thought that after the meteor crisis, Vlad was out of his life. Now, the fog of this ongoing war continued, this time in the very depths of Hell itself.

Dani thought of the kids, but her mind also turned to Youngblood. He hadn't told her why he was there. What could he be searching for? And how could she have forgotten all the fun she had when they were younger, and what made them part?

Just then, the sirens began again.

"What the hell's that?" Johnny asked.

The sky grew darker and darker, and the sounds and smells of decay surrounded them. The streets turned into rusted iron grating. Pitched blackness faced the crew.

Danny's immediate reaction was to take Sam from Johnny and Heather. He held her limp body close to him as the darkness enveloped them. Heather removed a flashlight from her jacket pocket and ignited the bulb. They could see the shop only one hundred yards away, but there were some other things near it as well, things that looked like thin hunched humanoids, lumbering towards them. As the group got near them, they could make out the pink, anemic bodies of these things that had what looked like a combination of peeled bananas and inquisitorial razor pendulums; none of them had eyes, but they seemed to know where to go.

"More of these damn things," Johnny said.

"I haven't seen any like these," Heather stated almost in response to Johnny, "My boyfriend in Brahms couldn't have dreamed up anything like this in his artwork."

"Well," Danny began, "they should go down the same way as the others." And with that, he went into ghost form, placed Sam near what used to be the sidewalk, and, standing near her, began firing energy bolts at the first few schism-headed beasts. They weren't easy to bring down, and in fact, they could just as easily wiggle their way around the deadly blasts. He was able to topple a few, as was Heather with her shotgun and Dani with her own blasts.

The first wave of them, however, was able to get close enough. Johnny blew one of their heads clean off with a slug round, but was soon cut on the arm in the same move by another's head. As it swung again in the same motion, Johnny tried to dodge, and it seemed perfectly logical that he would be able to, but the creature still nicked him across the chest. Youngblood's artificial hand pulled in and changed to a small rail gun, which then immediately fired off, the loud report resulting in the monster in front of Johnny collapsing to the ground.

"Thank me later," Youngblood said to him. Johnny nodded, mouth open.

Danny looked back and saw that Sam was not there. There was no sign of her body or any blood. The monsters could not have picked her up.

"Where's Sam?" Danny asked, panicked. He immediately turned around, however, and blasted another monster. He wasn't going to let these things distract him. "Where the hell is she?" He looked around and about him, but all he could see was the confusion of the battle. Could she have wandered off in her disillusioned state? The only thing he could do is press on. He darted through the beasts, blasting them where he could.

The rest attempted to follow him. They had killed all but a few of the remaining monsters, who seemed to be scattering, as if ordered elsewhere. Each of the crew had made their way into the store's entrance, save for Youngblood and Dani. Yet, as Dani was about to enter the door, it immediately collapsed in front of her. She looked up and saw what had caused it, the large arm of yet another beast, this one looking like one hulking male humanoid while on its back a female humanoid, both with decayed skin and wrapped in fleshy bandages. The beast roared at them, and Dani and Youngblood looked at each other, knowing what they must do, end their own discord in order to fight this Siamese twin monster.

"Stand back," Youngblood said, getting in front of Dani and turning his hand to a scatter gun. While the gun went off, the shells only met air, as the beast quickly brushed him to the ground as a picnicker would an ant. It leaped into the air and stood over him, about to bring its enormous arm down upon him. Youngblood tried to pull his arm back up to fire again, only to have the gun jam whenever he fired it. While he had lived with this hand most of his life, it was Skulker who had helped him make it; he knew more about ancient artifacts than he did technical knowledge, and the lack of knowledge would now be his downfall his the hand of discord's avatar was about to land on him, sending him back to Purgatory.

Just then, the beasts reared back, both howling an unearthly cry as Dani fired bold after bolt of energy, floating above them while not fully in her ghost form.

"Youngblood," Dani cried, "Get up and run to the ally. There should be a ladder." He rolled out of the way, and the monsters fell with a loud whomp against the metal grating. Dani seemed completely unconcerned about her power use; this thing was about to hurt someone she cared for. No sooner had this beast fell, however, than her mind began firing with images from the past. She remembered now why she had not spoken to Youngblood in so long and that the two had shared a wonderful friendship that she had always hoped had been more, that is, until she had to make a decision. She made it only to keep from hurting him. The last image was of her, staring at the phone as it rang and knowing it was for the best that she did not pick up, a tear in her eye.

She landed and ran towards the ally as from the streets ran countless skinned, split-headed dog beasts. She finally reached the ally where Youngblood was waiting with his gun aimed over her head.

"Ladies first," he said. Without thinking about it, she jumped at the ladder as Youngblood fired at the dogs. He then grabbed the ladder and began to climb up as well, the mouths of the hell hounds nipping and growling below him.

Halfway up the ladder, Dani heard Youngblood whistle and realized her mistake of going first.

"Pink really does suit you, babe," Youngblood said, ignoring their obviously grave situation as he was looking up her skirt at her pink satin panties. Dani just rolled her eyes, realizing that he was a typical stupid boy. She could not remember why she had bought them. Maybe she thought they would look pretty on her or, deep down, that she wanted to see what a man would think of her in them. She had plenty of opportunities, as she was by no means homely, but had turned them all down. She clung to the past too much, realizing that her own flaw could hurt any of the men she would ever get close to. Yet, at the same time, there was a feeling in her that really did not mind this stupid boy looking at her like this, this boy she had known for so long and had found again, even in the darkest pits of Hell.

"Thanks," was all that could come out of her mouth, a tone meant to be sarcastic but sounding more nervous, partially because of where they were and because she did still care for him.

They reached the top of the ladder, climbing out onto the roof of the shop. No sooner had they regained their bearings than a gargantuan, rust-covered moth, whose wings had what looked like human faces in agony across them, began flying behind them.

"Holy shit," Youngblood yelled as they raced towards the staircase door. It began firing large clumps of acidic vomit at them, making them dart this way and that to avoid it. Dani kicked the door in, and both were able to run inside, closing it behind them, safe now in the darkness, prepared to enter Vlad and Dahlia's lair.

Dani was the first to speak after the few seconds they had to catch their breath.

"Youngblood," she began, "There are a few things I've been meaning to tell you and should have told you sooner." As she was saying this, she then realized another important detail: she had not coughed once since Youngblood had come back into her life. She had made a mistake, and maybe it was time to undo that mistake.

……

Sam was surrounded in darkness, the only visible thing facing her being a door. All her mind could focus on were distant worlds, all erupting in chaos, dead worlds scattered throughout the galaxies, facing obliteration in black holes, one having the Marker, an artifact she could sense Nyarlathotep coveted. Then she saw another dead world, this one closer to Earth, a planet that was once rich with life, now locked in ice. It was once called Yuggoth but the humans had dubbed Pluto.

"I've brought you here for a reason," a soft teenage girl's voice sounded through the empty void. Sam didn't question it. "You miss and love your children very much. Who better to stop my mother than her antithesis? Now, I must ask that you stop the apocalypse. End the reign of the Great Old Ones."

She then saw something large in front of the door, illuminated by a light on the floor. It was a huge motorized circular saw, covered in blood.

"Use it to vanquish the evil beyond the door," the voice finally said before fading out. Sam slowly stumbled over to the saw, picked it up, and revved the engine.

"Bastards," Sam said, "You shall pay if you hurt my babies." She then opened the door and walked through the door to the realm of the Order.

….

"Everything's set," Walter said, his tone ever so calm, "Now all we need is to begin." He was staring at the two children, David and Christine, who were tied to chairs, completely sedated. They had been placed in front of a television which was now showing static. The ground was covered in blooded, rusted barbed wire. Through the two doors behind Walter came the Pyramid Heads, whose presence caused the barbed wire to retreat back into the small holes in the walls and floor.

"Take them to the main chamber," Walter ordered the Pyramid Heads in his soft voice, "The Sacraments shall begin momentarily.

…..

"Where the hell are we?" Johnny said, confused as he stood in the dim red light of the antique store. Heather was feeling around to try and put her footing right. Danny was getting up, having tripped over a china cabinet.

"The very place I've dreaded coming to again all my life," Heather responded.

"Well, it doesn't matter now," Danny said, "We need to stop them, get my kids back, and stop whatever this is from spreading further."


	17. The Fate of the Fools

Chapter 17 – The Fate of the Fools

"Our two souls therefore which are one, /Though I must go, endure not yet /A breach, but an expansion, /Like gold to airy thinness beat." – John Donne, "A Valediction Forbidding Mourning"

"Is it bright where you are/And have the people changed/Does it make you happy you're so strange/And in your darkest hour/Now all secrets fade/We can watch the world devoured in its pain." Billy Corgan, "The Beginning is the End is the Beginning"

They sat in silence, the reflective sound that befitted the darkness and deadness of their current setting. Dani sat on the other side of the room on the floor across from Youngblood, their backs propped against the walls. She had finished her story about three minutes ago, and now both of them were absorbing it.

"So that's it, huh?" Youngblood said, jarring Dani's nerves to look back up at him.

"Youngblood, I'm so sorry," Dani said, her voice trembling with the fear of his reaction of discontent, "I just didn't want to put you through losing me after letting you inevitably get closer to me."

"And instead I still lost you," Youngblood retorted, "Just not in an older age. And it was too late; I already did like you a lot."

There was another long pause. Dani didn't know what to say; nothing she could say could justify what her younger self had done. She knew how foolish she was for letting this slip away. But they were just kids then. How could either of them had known what the other would be like in the future?

"I guess I thought I should let you go cold turkey," she continued after a minute of silence, "I made myself forget all the good times we had and pranks we played; it was just easier for me to shut that entire portion of my life out and let go than to relive the happy times again and again, feeling the pain of losing you all over again."

"You were young," Youngblood responded.

"Yes," Dani said, not knowing what else to say. But he continued, making his case.

"And young people seem to think that way," Youngblood continued, "They shut out that which they think is the most painful; this is especially common in teens, still experiencing the anxiety of growing up. Some will either wallow in self pity like a protective blanket of mud and make others feel sorry for them, these being whiney emo kids, or there are others who cut out their feelings entirely, these being stoic emo kids. Neither of these 'defense mechanisms' are very healthy or productive," he paused, shrugging his shoulders, "Me, I say embrace the losses of your life as they come; don't let them tear you down. Sure, losses of friends and loved ones hurt when they happen, but you've got to let that make you stronger and use it improve your life and preserve them in your memory."

Dani looked up at him, a slight tear streaming down her face, reflecting on these newfound happy memories and not knowing what to feel about what he said. She was, however, starting to see his point.

"Eventually, each passing moment is like a tear in the rain…" She began.

"And that's why you can't let them slip away," Youngblood finished, "Revel in them and make them a part of you and your relationship with the other person. Strive to improve both of your lives in this. And this is coming from the kid who never wanted to frigging grow up in the first place, and now look at me." He extended his hand, emphasizing his new level of height, no longer the little squirt he used to be. "I'm an anthropologist who studies the psychology and archeology of dead civilizations, but I still have a bit of a wild streak in me and never forget what being young was like. You're, what, 30 now?"

"31, Youngblood," Dani said, "And I do see your point. I was a fool for shutting it all out. I guess I had trouble growing up or being fully rational, constantly living in fear that one day, I would completely disintegrate in front of the people I loved most."

"No one can live constantly on the edge of fear," Youngblood said, "True bravery comes from accepting the fact that one day you will die, so live while you can."

"Ever since I've gotten here, though," Dani continued, "It seems the destabilization has come faster and faster, this time in the form of tuberculosis. I've been coughing up ectoplasm since I left that hospital in South Vale."

"It's this town," Youngblood said, "It's playing on your fears and turning them into reality. I've read quite a bit about the history of this town and heard from numerous people who have ventured here. The trick is not to let it get to you; your mind and strength of will must beat it. You think you're disintegrating? The town makes it real. I sought out a guy who had journeyed here once, saying that he met his current wife here after she manifested herself into flesh by the town's will alone. His previous late wife would have wanted it that way though, and for his reward in facing his past, she reformed herself, albeit someone slightly different; it was all really strange when I first heard about it. His name was James, I think. I don't think you've coughed once since I've been here right?"

"No, I haven't," she said, wondering if he had always talked this much. Then another thought entered her mind, "Youngblood, why are you here?"

"Well, I came searching for something," Youngblood said, "It's called the Flauros. It was stolen from me, and now I'm going to return the gesture."

"What does it do?" Dani asked, curious.

He paused.

"Nothing," Youngblood lied, "Nothing at all. It's just a cultural piece. But I think I found something better anyways." He then looked up into her eyes and smiled. She then passed the smile back to him with another. They both stood, eyes not leaving one another's.

"Let's start again," Dani said. She held out her hand, as if to shake his in greeting.

"Agreed," Youngblood said, and took her hand but did not shake it. Instead, he held it gently and stared into her eyes. All that time that they could have spent together, all that time that was lost, now regained, even in the depths of this black pit. Where was she when he was missing her to death? But it didn't matter now. There was still a connection, a golden thread between them that could not be denied or broken.

She felt it too.

There was a minute or two in the silence and the darkness, but eventually it was broken with the quick pounce of her hands around his waist. He slowly wrapped his arms around her too, after the shock. She felt safe, and finally, complete.

There was a clicking sound of the door at the far end of the room unlocking.

"We should go," Dani said, letting go.

"Yes," Youngblood said, "Lets go get your niece and nephew and my artifact."

…

The three, Danny, Johnny, and Heather, walked towards the far wall where the orange light was piercing the darkness they found themselves enveloped in. The origin of this was what looked like a small hole in the wall, big enough for them to duck in and walk through.

"Well, it looks like we can't exactly go back now," Johnny said.

"We never could," Heather responded. The three then set to wandering through the orange-lit tunnel. Danny's mind was a full collection of different worries. Where was Sam? Did the monsters take her? Were his kids still alright? And were Dani and Youngblood still able to hold their own against that beast which caused the cave in?

"Got to keep moving," Danny said to himself, "Can't be blinded by this. Vlad must be stopped. I have to believe my kids are safe and that this journey was not in vain."

They pushed on for what seemed like an eternity. As they progressed, it seemed like the light was getting stronger, but the walls of the tunnel looked more and more deteriorated. They were moving closer and closer to what lay ahead, the surface of this dark pit, the light leading them to the truth. But was the truth going to end in decay?

Finally, Danny emerged out of the hole in the wall. He moved out of the way so Heather and Johnny could get out as well. The first thing the group noticed, however, was what stood on the opposite wall: a brightly lit altar with a red curtain running down off of the front of it and trailing off to the far hallway to the right. A bright burning cup was in the center of the table. Above that was the picture of some horrifying creature whose description cannot be placed.

There was a moment's pause before someone finally spoke.

"This is the other church," Heather said.

"We're going to have to proceed onward," Danny said, "Vlad is near." The three ran down the arched hallway and into a very large room, dimly lit by candles and the fires underneath the grating in the floor. The stone walls extended high until they terminated into darkness. At the far end of the room were David and Christine, sitting passed out in wheelchairs, in front of Vlad, Dahlia, the two Pyramid Head demons, and Walter.

"At last," Vlad said, hovering above them, "you've come to witness the beginning of the end and my rise to power."

"Damn you, Vlad," Danny growled, "If you've hurt them…"

"I haven't yet," Vlad says, "but soon it will be time for their end."

"Their souls will ascend to Xuchilbara," Dahlia shouted, "and the Order will rise again. We have promised to give Vlad the power he desires and to make Walter whole again, as he once was when he lost his battle to revive his mother. These children are worthy vessels for the final sacrament. You should be proud to have given life to such perfect subjects."

…

Sam was running down the dark hallway, the motor of her circular saw revving. Her mind no longer had the calm, peace loving ideals; now, all she knew was fire and revenge. Her feet tramping and the whirring of the saw were the only dins throughout and were as the war drum that brought a revolutionary soldier his courage.

…

Danny began charging his fists into green energy, gritting his teeth.

"Oh no, Danny boy," Vlad said, lifting a dark red talisman, causing Danny to fall to the floor.

"The Seal of Metatron," Heather said, "I thought that thing was useless."

"Oh, no," Vlad said, "I've found a way to harness it to its fullest potential. It's what's been limiting your powers the entire time you've been here."

"Yeah," Johnny said, lifting his shotgun, "But it won't stop a slug round in your head."

"Do you honestly think that's going to affect me?" Vlad asked, "I could just go incorporeal and then just as quickly kill Danny for your insolence of firing upon the being of greatness that I have become." He held his energy charged hand to Danny's head.

…

Dani and Youngblood proceeded down the dark hallway, a red lit door at the end. Neither said one another, but there was nothing that needed to be said; they knew the danger that waited at the end. At the same time, however, Dani felt comforted that Youngblood was there and in the feeling that there was someone else with her, someone who had been wandering the town the entire time, someone who still believed in the Light that hovered and watched over humanity within the heavens, someone who was tortured by this town and was about to try and set things right.

She reached out and held Youngblood's metallic hand. He looked over at her and gave her a reassuring look that everything would be alright.

They reached the door and opened it, only to find a large room beneath them with no walkway to it from the door. It was an orange lit room from the collection of candles that encircled the lower level. They could see the kids, the Pyramid Heads, Dahlia, Walter, and Vlad holding a seal of great power up to Danny.

"And why I don't do it now, you ask?" they heard Vlad say, "Part of the fun was for Daniel to watch the loss of someone close to him, the same way his mother became dead to me. But in this loss, he will see the level of power ruthlessness can bring. Ironically, this was a seal used once by an angel. Now, I can play an angel, albeit one of death."

"It is the coming of the Old Ones," Dahlia blurted out madly, "A new beginning for the world as we know it, an eternal paradise, ruled under gloriously powerful hands of Xuchilbara, Nyarlathotep, and the ever great Azathoth."

"So, a paradise for the castrated, do you mean?" Johnny said.

"Where have I heard that?" Heather said to herself.

"It will begin with the rise of Xuchilbara," Walter said so calm and smoothly, "guided by Lobsel Vith, right here and right now, with the sacrifice of David and Christine. Soon, I shall see my mother again and be whole."

…

Sam could hear the words of Walter in what was left of her mind. They rang in her head like the air raid sirens during the German bombings of England in World War II. They were the same sirens that resounded throughout the town. His voice pushed her on. But it was not him that was her target; it was the sightless aggression, the manifestation of the town's sins and her own, the Pyramid Heads. She knew they could not die by her hands, but the rage of her mind and heart would still lash out at them.

She was coming closer now.

…

Danielle looked at Vlad with a rage burning in her own heart and mind. He had taken everything from her; he was the one who forced her into an existence of fear and lies. He treated her like a puppet and, now, was crushing the very will of her cousin.

Youngblood looked around for his prize, for the Flauros, and gazed at Dahlia's hand; there was the answer. She was going to open it, and he intended to stop that. After all, what good was a "cultural relic" that was no longer haunted?

Dani still could not take her eyes away from Vlad, the monster that infested her mind for so long; she did not notice the Pyramid Heads that stood by or Walter, staring at the crowd with nothing but a suspiciously lingering smile, the real demons all standing behind the one behind her life's negativity. Now was the time to act, the time to finally bring this to a close.

She charged up a bolt in her hand.

The bolt flew out of her hands all by itself.

Much to Vlad's surprise, an energy bolt knocked the seal from his hands, ending its connectivity to his own energy. Vlad looked up and, with little dismay, found Dani standing there. Heather looked up at Dani too and saw someone standing behind her, someone no one else could see, the girl who was her other part, the piece of the puzzle that would soon make her whole again.

"You," Vlad began in a harsh voice, "You bitch…you stupid bitch…I always thought you were worthless, and now I regret killing you while still I had the chance so many years ago…"

Dani just stood there, shaking her head, a blank stare upon her face, tears involuntarily reaching down to the top of her cheeks.

"You can't hurt me," Dani said in a low voice but still loud enough to be heard, "You can't hurt anyone…not anymore."

"And I'm going to see to that, too," Danny said, rising to his knees, putting both hands out and charging them into huge energy blasts that knocked Vlad into the air. Vlad staggered but soon recovered, hovering in mid air and flying up, firing his own blasts at Danny. He then flew back up to Vlad, meeting his challenge.

…

She was closer. She knew the time had come.

…

Vlad then gave the order Danny had so dreaded to hear.

"For their insolence," he shouted, "Begin the sacrifice!"

"You heard him," Walter said, looking over at the Pyramid Heads with that unflinching face that scarred so many in visions in the asylums around the world, "Now, I shall be free so see my true mother."

"Xuchilbara comes," Dahlia shouted, "And he brings his paradise with him! The faithful shall finally transcend!"

The Pyramid Heads raised their spears high, while Dahlia raised the Flauros. It began hovering above their heads. The four other triangles floated off of the base, glowing with a red light of the worlds of chaos Sam saw in her visions. Youngblood saw this and tried to stop it; he turned his hand into the rail gun yet again and began firing, the shots only bouncing off the unseen barrier around it, causing him to then realize that it was too late to stop what was in motion.

…

Now, Sam was going to put a stop to their actions. The door was right in front of her. Her foot lifted.

…

The Pyramid Heads had just raised their hands, and in their delay, the door to their left shattered out, taking some of the stone off the wall with it. The sound of the saw's motor echoed through the air. In came Sam, flailing the saw at the two spear-wielding juggernauts.

"Sam," Danny called down while avoiding one of Vlad's punches. He was still in the middle of battling Vlad, as he had done for so many years prior. It was like riding a bicycle; he hadn't forgot how. He dodged a punch, then a blast. The new power of the town seemed to have amped up Vlad abilities. That, or Danny was out of shape. Still, Danny had time to look down and see Sam, only it was not the same woman he had fallen in love with or married. Her eyes told the story of someone who had seen the unthinkable and was now about to unleash it on any who stood in her way.

"Bastards," Sam screamed. She flung her saw and took the head of the Pyramid Head's spear off. She then darted between them and began hitting the blades against the other's head, causing it to stagger. The one she was attacking then turned his spear on her. She darted out of the way, and the Pyramid Head stabbed the other through the neck, causing it to stop moving and slowly evaporate into thin air. Sam continued to leap at the beast, but it barely phased it now. The second Pyramid Head this took his own spear and jammed it into his own neck, oily black blood oozing out, now standing as a scarecrow on a pike.

"You think that will stop our paradise?" Walter asked rhetorically, and with that, he flailed his own saw at Sam, who still had an unrelenting rage inside of her. Her rage, however, did not stand up to the might of his chainsaw's blow against her own motorized saw, the force knocking her to the ground. Walter then leapt into the air and landed on top of Sam. She quickly brought up the saw and blocked the other saw that was now revving near her face. Walter laughed maniacally at the victory that he would surely find in this.

"Hey, asshole," Johnny shouted, causing Walter to look up, his gaze only to meet the barrel of a high caliber shotgun. It went off, causing Walter to lose his head in a different way this time. Sam was now safe, although covered in blood, brains, and skull fragments. So boastful, yet so weak in his spectral form, she thought, a moment of her own mind returning to her.

"All of you are too late," Dahlia said, "You may have prevented the sacraments by the faithful's hands, but Xuchilbara still approaches, although momentarily incomplete." The Flauros rotated faster and illuminated brighter than it had. There was something moving around in a dim red light on the high, ominous ceiling, something big and ravenous.

"What's happening?" Dani asked Youngblood.

"Exactly what I feared," Youngblood said, "Exactly what I didn't like about being young, knowing that the bogyman was real and unstoppable."

Heather was not looking at the beast of unspeakable horror that loomed and grew out of the ceiling. She had been staring at the girl on the high cliff the entire time. The girl, Alessa, the part of her that had been lost for so long, floated down and stood before her. I will help you, her face seemed to say. She knew then that if they could unite, just this once, the part of her that still lingered in this town, then maybe they could push back the darkness once more, this time with the help of the great Danny


	18. Leading to Paradise wBloodStained Hands

Chapter 18 – Leading to Paradise with Blood-Stained Hands

"And on the pedestal these words appear:/'My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;/Look on my works. Ye Mighty, and despair!'/Nothing beside remains. Round the decay/Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare/The lone and level sands stretch far away." -- Percy Shelley, "Ozymandias"

"Withered rope, you hang what's empty/Can't remain to put it simply/In time cry the hollow words to sing with false disguise/Smothered hope fly from sorrow/For a new divine tomorrow/I just don't want to know anymore." – Nivek Ogre, "Smothered Hope"

Despite what was going on within and without the darkness of the ceiling, with the lurking red beast desiring to emerge, the battle between Danny and Vlad raged on. They circled through the air, throwing another punch and another blast here and there. All these years, all the conflict, now reflected in this final brawl.

Danny dodged Vlad's punch and delivered a concentrated blast that knocked Vlad higher into the air. Vlad, however, soon recovered, hovering above the smoke. Danny then tried to follow up with a flying uppercut, only to be distracted by what was coming out of the smoke and dark fire; something was starting to come out of it, but he could not quite make out what it was. Vlad then took this opportunity to send one of his own blasts down and knocked Danny back down to the ground.

"Foolish boy," Vlad laughed, "The years of NASA space study and frivolity have made you soft. I expected more from you, with all that we've gone through. Now, I have far surpassed you with this newfound power from the Great Old Ones. Soon, they shall exalt me into their council of power."

Once Vlad had finished his speech, there was a harsh, maddening roar that sounded like some whine of a far accursed flute of the Blind Piper or the Atlantic Ocean crashing and parting, making way for something much more horrifying, some sunken cyclopean tomb. So too was what came from the ceiling, a beast that could have fashioned the figure of a man, had it not been for its great size, stretching roughly 24 feet from the hovering smoke, but its face was formless and indistinguishable. Its hands looked human as well, but the fingers of it looked like needles from which a child would develop a fear when seen at a dentist's office. Its skin was flesh colored but was also here and there splotched with rust and coagulated blood. There was also what looked like a gargantuan, barbed wired wheel hovering around its back, encircling it in its all encompassing madness. The creature hung upside down from its dark point of origin in the ceiling and gazed upon all there assembled, even without a face.

"Holy shit," Johnny said, "What the hell is that?"

"Xuchilbara has come," Dahlia exclaimed, "But he is not complete. He needs the sacrifices to be made and a body to possess. Vlad, you have been chosen to become a part of him."

"What!?" Vlad exclaimed, "That was not part of our deal."

"Oh, Vlad," Dahlia said, "So much like that foolish Kaufmann. I promised you power, but never said how. I promised you eternal life, but not where."

This avatar of madness then grasped Vlad within its hands and, without giving him even time to react, slammed him into the face of its head. It then brought its hand away to reveal Vlad being absorbed into its face in what resembled an upside down crucifixion, its skin eating into his pail flesh, a sight that made even Dani cringe, no matter her hatred for him.

Danny looked up in horror at this sight; how could he possibly stand up to this? He only desired to defend his family, but now he saw that his kids were unconscious, his wife was raving mad, and the room was now at the mercy of Xuchilbara, the Order's crimson god. Had he failed them? What did he really accomplish in coming here?

None, however, noticed another fusion that was taking place among them. Heather stared at her other self, Alessa, with a feeling of both terror and awe, the portion of herself that never truly wanted this but dreamt only of suffering, who's dreams served as the foundation for this down.

"This will only be temporary," Alessa said to Heather in her mind, "Just until things are made right. Then, I will send you back to where you belong." With that, she held out her hands and wrapped them around Heather, who in turn wrapped hers around her likewise. Alessa's body seemed to have an osmosis effect with Heather's. No sooner had the two fused then a light emanated from where Heather had stood, now revealing a dark haired version of Heather in a long flowing silk dress. She then began to float into the air, raising herself roughly 30 feet away from where Vlad's stiff body jutted out of the Xuchilbara's head. The light that burned from her added a contrast to the dark entity she now faced.

"Return from where you came," Heather said, her voice having a heavenly echo, "I will not allow you to take our world. The time for the apocalypse has not yet come to pass."

"This world is mine," the beast said through Vlad, whose face still stuck out of the head's flesh, "My own have called me, and now I shall make a paradise out of the destruction I and the Old Ones shall bring. We are the things that were and that shall be again."

"This world is not yours," Heather responded, "The will of man is stronger, and it is that will that gives the stability of their lives."

"It is also that free will that allows them to tear each other apart," the monster continued through Vlad's mouth, "We only hasten that destruction. Growth always ends in decay, Light extinguishes, and love always fades into discord. We will rise again and take what was ours so long ago."

"There is a Light, a Love that holds the balance of the world," Heather said, "And I shall bear Its witness by sending you back to your world of shadows."

"You shall not stop me," the thing said, and with that, it lifted its hands to create what looked like dark red lightning across the room towards Heather.

Heather then sent bright white lightning at Xuchilbara, which seemed to counteract it without actually pushing it back. Her power was amazing, but it alone could not hold this beast back.

Danny watched all of this and knew he had to help. But how could he? His negligence had caused them to disappear in the first place. He was the Pyramid Head monster putting his kids into cages of loneliness. If he had another chance, would he make things right? Had he really failed? Could there still be time to stop all of this? Yes. For the sake of his family and for the sake of the world, he had to stop this. He would go and help Heather.

"Sam, David, Christine, things are going to be better," He said as he pushed himself from the floor and flew into the air. He hovered next to Heather and fired a concentrated blast at the thing as well.

"Daniel, you must combine your energy with mine," She said.

"You mean cross the streams of energy?" Danny asked, "Isn't that dangerous? It could kill us all."

"You must trust me," Heather said, "Cross the streams." Danny put his hands near Heather's combining his beam with her lightning. The combined energy eventually began to push back at Xuchilbara.

Everything was beginning to become very bright.

"What have you done?" Dahlia said, "My plans…NO!"

The room itself was drowned in light, a beautiful, golden glow that gave all who stood within it a sense of warmed and well being, a sense that nothing could go wrong, no pain, no death.

The group felt as if they were going home, right where they belonged.

…

Danny found himself slumped against the wall of his apartment, his kids next to him in each arm. His vision was blurry, but he knew where he was and what the familiar light that was coming through the window was, the sun, a light he never thought he would see again. And he saw his beloved wife, Sam, lying on the couch. She was asleep the same way the kids were, although her face suggested a more uneasy state, as though she were just starting to recover from a nightmare.

As Danny lowered his head, he noticed that Christine began to stir and open her eyes.

"Daddy?" she asked, knowing it was him, hugging him tighter. David also began to stir and awaken to the material world.

"Dad, is that you?" he asked.

"Yes kids, you're home," Danny said, "I thought I had lost you both." He held them both as tight as he could, not wanting to let go ever again.

"The last thing I remember was being attacked by those things," Christine said.

"You saw them too, right dad?" David asked, not even believing any of it himself, or rather not wanting to remember.

"Yes," Danny said, "Your mother and I came to save you."

"Oh, I knew you would," Christine said, "I never doubted we'd be fine."

"What about mom?" David asked, "Will she be alright? Will any of those visions leave her? Surely the town hasn't taken her mind; she's stronger than that." He spoke in a way that was well beyond his years. Danny looked at David with amazement and pride, then looking over at Christine's comforting smile with the same feelings. His kids were perfect, representing the best of both him and Sam. He would never ignore that or place his job over his family again, lest they lose themselves once more in the fog of that accursed town, not the place itself, but the boding and memory of it.

"She'll be fine," he reassured them, "We'll take her to bed and give her some rest. She should be fine once she wakes." He stood and walked over to the couch, picking Sam up and carrying her to the bedroom. He then placed her in bed and covered her up in the blankets. She looked at peace now, her face in less of a strain. He scooted the kids out the door and, following them, shut it, giving his mad warrior woman the time she needed to rest.

…

Heather found herself lying on the floor of her and Ike, her boyfriend's, apartment. She could see the redwood floors and the cedar legs of one of his canvases. Batting her eyes as if she had just awakened from a dream, she pushed herself to sit up. Ike then walked in the room, wearing that goofy bandana he always wore whenever he was painting. He had obviously just been outside as he was wearing the new hoodie she had gotten for him.

Ike was roughly her age, only a year younger. They had met over a chat group about the Silent Hill town, those that had been through there or had some indirect link. They then found they had more in common than some dark history, that there could be some joy between them. The problem was, though, that Ike continued to get visions from there, which had a heavy influence on his paintings.

He stopped in a moment of shock when he arrived, but then relaxed, as he understood the power of that town.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" He asked with a smile.

"Yeah," Heather said, still feeling a little groggy but nonetheless glad to see him, "I was able to help those people and stop that thing from getting through."

"Glad to hear it," he said, "I was worried about you."

She laughed.

"You should know," she said, standing up and hugging him, "that I would've been fine no matter what."

"I hate to bring this up right now," Ike said.

"What?" Heather asked.

"I've made another painting," he continued, "It was based on some dream I had, some dream of a sunken city, something I haven't seen before in any of the visions I got from that town."

…

Johnny found himself sitting in the waiting room at the asylum. He, too, had just woken up from what seemed like an endless nightmare. He wondered how he had gotten here or what he was doing here. The sun, a beautiful sight indeed streamed down the window, and he knew then that the nightmare was over, for now.

"Mr. Test," a nurse called out, waving her hand "Dr. Dreiberg will see you now."

Johnny got up and followed suit to enter the office of Dr. Sally Dreiberg. It looked like it would be very peaceful, with light colors on the walls and floor. There were various pieces of art hanging here and there, several awards as well, but also curiously enough a picture of those two old vigilantes, Nite Owl and Silk Spectre. Dr. Dreiberg was standing across the desk.

"Ah, Mr. Test," she said, "Please sit down." He was not quite sure why he was totally there, so he sat down and decided to play along.

"So, what have you got for me, doc?" he asked.

"Well, we have some very good news for you," she said, "Sissy has shown quite a bit of improvement over the past month. I think she's ready to go home, as long as she continues to take some precautionary medication for the next few weeks."

"What?" Johnny asked in dismay, but feeling nonetheless that a weight had been lifted, "What sort of changes have you seen?"

"Well," the doctor began, "it's as if she's has gone completely 180 degrees from what she was. She doesn't have any memory of these visions, and her temper has subsided drastically than what it had been. We haven't had an outburst from her in weeks. It's as if she's a normal person again."

"Wow," Johnny said, not knowing how to react, "When can she come home?"

"Just give us another two weeks with her," she continued, "and we'll see if this keeps up, which I have confidence it will."

Johnny breathed a sigh of relief. No longer did he have to feel alone; he could again be with someone as equally cocky as he was. Not to mention, it had been forever since he had been laid, but that could wait until she felt ready again. He respected her enough for that.

…

Youngblood awoke, leaning over a coffee table, his right hand grasping what he soon recognized as the Flauros, his fingers entwined with someone else's. Blinking, he soon saw that it was Dani, but he did not recognize her from her face but rather her pink panties yet again. Thus, his eyes diverted from the coveted treasure he had coveted for so long and were now locked on her crotch.

Dani opened her eyes and saw that she was in the same position, right hand holding the Flauros. Immediately, a great power struck her, one she had never felt before, resonating within the object. Youngblood would have his wish; the piece was still haunted.

"Youngblood," she said in a groggy voice, recognizing his hand as she awakened to the real world.

"Yes, Dani girl?" he asked playfully. It was then that Dani realized where he was looking yet again. She bolted back and put her hands between her legs.

"Dammit, Youngblood," she yelped, "You're still just as immature as ever. Your mind is in the gutter 24 seven, isn't it?"

"I can't help it," Youngblood said in an apologetic tone, "You're hard to resist, babe."

While a little frustrated with him, she blushed in flattery. Not many men had said that to her; he was the first sober one to ever make such a comment. She then found the strength to look at him again and saw that something was very off about him. His skin looked normal, as that of a human's skin.

"What?" he asked, noticing the weird look on her face.

"You look…normal," she said, stammering. He then looked into the glass of the table at which they sat and saw for himself. It's true, he even felt different. He could actually feel a heightened sense of things around him, the air around him, the touch of both the artifact, and even the lingering feeling of Dani's hand.

"Wow," Youngblood said, slightly aghast, "Maybe that Heather chick did something to me. I wonder if I still have my ghost powers." He then thought about it, but the more he thought, the less it seemed likely. He began rubbing his chin with his robotic hand.

Dani was looking at him, head tilted to the side. All of the sudden, he disappeared.

"Youngblood," she gasped.

"What?" he asked, reappearing. "Huh. Well, I guess that answers that question. Now where the hell are we?" They looked around and saw that they were in a very large room with various signs here and there, one of which read 'MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY, CHICAGO'.

"Well," Dani said, "I guess you got your wish. You wanted to turn this in to a museum. And don't worry; it's still possessed by all that weirdness" She stood up, and then said under her breath, "although I don't think it's really a safe place to put it."

"You know what?" Youngblood asked rhetorically, also standing to his feet, "This completely goes against my principles, but I think I'm going to keep it."

"Why?" Dani asked, a little surprised, "You came all that way for the thing, not to mention you wouldn't even tell me what it did, and now you want to keep it, after it nearly killed us?"

"Yeah," Youngblood said, "I can keep it under safe lock and guard."

"But I thought you were always so focused on gold and booty and all that," she said, hoping that this was not the only thing about which he could think, but then she knew that, with the various perverted gawking he gave her.

"Doesn't matter," he said, walking up to her slowly and putting his hand on her cheek, "I think I found a better treasure."

"Youngblood," Dani began, breaking away slowly, "Everything has just changed so fast. You just appeared back in my life so suddenly, and I pushed you away out of fear of getting too close. I'm damaged goods."

"It's that stupid town that brought it back up," Youngblood said, "Who's to say your problem of falling apart or whatever could have cleared up years ago? You're older and stronger now, and maybe with that, you've gained some sort of stability. And even if it hasn't, I can accept your imperfections and face whatever comes. Think you can put up with my moments of perverted thoughts and immaturity?"

She looked down, thinking on his words. All her life, she had lived in fear. Now, with Vlad gone, that gave her some sense of peace, even if that still did not quite settle her mind of her eventual fate. But what if he was right? What if she could live her life without the thought of destabilizing? Nobody knew the day or the hour when the death would come for them. Why then did she have to worry about it? She thought of the final line from the Poe song, "Amazed." All that fear that she had built up for nearly two decades was now gone; it felt so wonderful, a novel experience indeed.

And she laughed with the sense of joy in this new revelation.

"I always have accepted your quirks, haven't I?" she asked rhetorically, giving him the smile he wanted to see from her, "And you know what else? I think I might even go back to school for anthropology."

She felt so strange, having not felt this way in years. It was so frightening, but at the same time, she did not want to deny it, deny him. He made her feel wild, like the two pranksters they had been in the past, but also in a passionate way.

Youngblood leaned in and gave her the longest kiss she had ever received in her life. The heat that she felt in his new, fleshy lips seemed to reflect the same golden warmth Heather had given, the Love that bound all of mankind together and kept order and harmony within mankind, giving all who felt its light peace and understanding. She never wanted this blessed feeling to go away. She wanted now to stay with him always.

They parted, and she looked up into his beautiful green eyes. Both parties could then see how much they cared for one another. Finally, a new beginning awaited them. They did not know what awaited them, but they knew they could not wait to see it.

Suddenly, Dani began to cough again. Youngblood backed away to give her some room. Surprisingly to Dani, it was only a minor one, without the burning in her lungs like in the town. She looked down into her hand and saw that she had coughed up no ectoplasm. Youngblood breathed a relieved sigh and could only think to say one thing.

"You've really got to do something about that cough."HH


	19. Epilogue

Epilogue

"It is astonishing just how much of what we are can be tied to the beds we wake up in in the morning, and it is astonishing how fragile that can be." Neil Gaiman, Coraline

The unfamiliar sun streamed down through the window, giving everything within the room a glistening effect. The blinds were only partially shut to let in the bright ultraviolet rays. It was, however, a welcomed sight from the opening eyes of Sam. It was as if her mind was experiencing it for the first time, her mind restarting itself with new memories and new senses of joy to face.

It was then that Sam recognized where she was, in the bedroom of her apartment, lying in bed. She arose to greet this new day, as if none of the night before had happened. Funny thing was that when she tried to think back on things, she could not quite remember any of her nightmares for the past few months. The visions of dead worlds, ghoulish creatures, and the ever present threat of Nyarlathotep had left her mind. She remembered viewing them, that they had been there, but all of their ghastly details had left. No longer would she trudge to dark towers or walk down five and a half minute hallways in her mind, only to get lost in darkness. A new day had begun for her.

She walked to the doorway and opened it to see her family and friends all having lunch together. Tucker, Valerie, their daughter, Erica, her kids, David and Christine, and of course her love, Danny, were all there around the table.

"Mom's awake," Christine said, running up to her and hugging her tightly.

"Are you feeling any better?" David asked, smiling.

"Yes, son," Sam responded, "I think I'm going to be fine." She looked over at Danny, his smiling face warming her inside. All that they had gone through had now come to a head, and now she saw that the results were beautiful. She had friends who cared about her, children who loved her, and a man who adored her, one who she could protect and who could protect her in return. Her eyes met with Danny's, and in their minds, they could feel the ever present passion radiating from one another. They were making love with their eyes, one that all could see and all could find rejoicing.

"No more nightmares, Mom," Christine asked, causing her mother to break her gaze with Danny and look down into her sweet, caring face.

"No, sweetie," Sam responded, "my nightmares are over."

……………………..

Gaz awoke from her nightmare, gasping for breath as she sat up.

"What is it, my love pig," Zim said, turning his head groggily to look at her. He had a look of concern but also one of annoyance, having been awoken.

"Another damn nightmare," Gaz said weakly, gripping her chest, the soft feeling of her black silk nightie giving her some relief, however small. "They're starting to come more frequently. I sense that Danny and Sam have taken care of what happened in Silent Hill, but that's not stopping it."

"Should Zim go and prepare the house's defenses?" Zim asked, rubbing her back with one hand, her soft skin giving him some small relief as well.

"No," Gaz said, "That won't be necessary yet. I'm going to let Mandy know tomorrow that it's gotten worse. I think we've got to anticipate for some major crap. The nightmares have only just begun."


	20. Alternate Joke Ending

Alternate Joke Ending

"There's not a shred of evidence that these UFOs or the life-forms behind them are a threat or hostile to us. There is a lot of evidence that some rogue military projects have done foolish and dangerous things that have been aggressive toward them." – Dr. Steven Greer

"[B]orn to bear and bring to all the details of our ending./To write it down for all the world to see./But I forgot my pen./Shit the bed again./Typical." – Maynard James Keenan, "Rosetta Stoned"

"MOON CRYSTAL POWER!" – Sailor Moon

Xuchilbara loomed over the group all scary like after having eaten Vlad like a Ritz cracker. But that wouldn't matter for much longer, as Alessa had a trick up her sleeve. She knew exactly what would bring the beast to its knees, the very thing that brought down the entity six years ago, the Princess Heart wand.

Heather stood and stared at Alessa as she approached her. They were almost one centimeter away, seeming as if Alessa wanted to merge with her. Suddenly, Alessa drew an uncharacteristic shit-eating grin.

"Here!" Alessa exclaimed, reaching behind her back and pulling the Princess Heart wand from behind her back, "Use this!" Heather took it from her, vaguely remembering what it was she now held. Still, her mind recalled what to do with it and the immense power it carried. She lifted the wand into the foul, hot air, which then caused the heart within it to spin. White sparks flew from it, and an enchanting melody echoed from the walls.

Heather felt herself lifting into the air, images of little pink hearts surrounding her. The skin on her arms tingled until it grew, reaching the wholeness of her body. She felt rejuvenated, like having downed five energy drinks in one giant shot glass. More sparks emitted from her as she was now revealed to be wearing a short, white latex dress with a pink heart around her breasts, pink and yellow spiral earmuffs, a pink belt, red gloves , and blue panties that she thought were so cute how they matched her boots.

Oh yes, a hapless character caught in a horror story if anyone ever saw one.

She pointed at Xuchilbara, striking a dramatic pose and looking really goofy to the audience.

"Not so fast," Heather shouted, "You now must answer to Sailor Heather, champion of all video game women not obsessed about their physical appearance." But of course, she was one to talk with how she looked now.

"You tell 'em!" Dani shouted, sticking her thumb in the air.

"Muhg megh guguuuuu," mumbled Sam on the ground in her insanity, twitching on the ground and trying but failing miserably to speak the King's English.

"Ha ha," Xuchilbara laughed, "You think a little change into a skimpy number shall stop me?"

"No, but this will," Heather responded, putting two fingers across her eyes, "SEXY BEAM POWER!" With that, white lasers shot from her eyes.

The author asked himself why he was writing this chapter, as it just got dumber as time passed. It was because fans of the games' joke endings needed this, he guessed.

Xuchilbara then responded with his own energy beams, making Heather then realize she could not do it alone.

"Danny," she cried out, still firing her beam of sexiness, "I need your help."

"What can I do to help?" Danny said, trying to get up from Vlad's attack.

"I need you to do a dance," Heather said, "Do a Danny Dance!"

"Oh," Danny said, springing to his feet and flying into the air, "This I shall do!"

And fans of Danny Phantom all asked, "What the hell?"

Danny proceeded to boogie, fueling Heather's superbeam. The added force was pushing back the dark entity's power. Yet all the while, there was a strange hum above their heads, but they had to fight against this evil.

"No!" Xuchilbara shouted, "What have you done?" And with that, a strange feeling came over all, while the room faded to white.

Heather then found herself in a strange, silver room with computer consuls along the walls and the ever present sound of John Prine's "Fish and Whistle" playing in the background. Suddenly, grey aliens appeared before her, with bulbuls head and black eyes.

"Do you like him?" Bob the alien asked Heather, "I mean we can put on some Jim Stafford or Elvis if you don't."

"Where am I?" Heather asked, confused.

"Oh," Tom, the other alien, responded, "we brought you on board our ship to spare you the fate we had planned for Silent Hill."

"They stole our cheese puffs," Bob grumbled, "then beamed transmissions of that horrible movie Pootie Tang onto our monitors, the latter of which we needed therapy afterwards."

"Revenge shall come swift!" exclaimed Tom.

"Anything you want me to do?" Heather asked.

"Yes," Bob said, "we want you to watch our dog." He then pointed to a pembroke welsh corgi who was hiking his leg on one of the computer terminals.

"And, if you don't mind," Tom interjected, "some experiments?"

"Ugh," Heather rolled her eyes, "Does this stupid story need anymore fan-service?"

The U.F.O.s then mounted for their attack, firing lasers that in a matter of seconds turned Silent Hill into nothing but a 200 mile crater.

Morel of the story: Never, under any circumstances, stick your hand in the toilet. It's not sanitary.

A/N: And I'm still wondering why I wrote this. Oh, well. I said I would make one, so here it is.


End file.
